Mariposa family hopes to rebuild after French Fire destroys home

MARIPOSA COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- For Lydia Woolsey, she had the perfect determination for a 3 story-family location overlooking Mariposa County. Now the representation cleanable spot is filled with ash and rubble.

"I was bittersweet due to the fact that each photographs, yearbooks, babe blankets, gifts from agelong ago, conscionable full devastation, I was surprised," said Woolsey.

The French Fire scorched done Mariposa County connected the 4th of July - destroying her location and astatine slightest 3 others.

Woolsey was shocked to spot the magnitude of her nonaccomplishment erstwhile she was allowed to instrumentality connected Saturday.

"Yes, I perfectly thought thing would inactive beryllium standing, that's wherefore arsenic soon arsenic they fto america travel up, I had to spot for myself," said Woolsey.

Woolsey owned the location with her girl - and each 7 of their household members lived there, including Toni Honseler and their astir 10 period aged grandbaby.

"We near with the apparel connected our backmost and that's it, and it's devastating due to the fact that you person to commencement everything again and the world is you truly are going to commencement everything again," said Honseler.

Honseler says they are Mariposa natives, truthful they've ever prepared for wildfire season.

They made definite to region vegetation to make clearance connected the spot - but she says the flames dispersed truthful rapidly - not giving their location a warring chance.

"Everybody says, person your spell bag, person your meds ready, we had our spell backmost we had our meds ready, but it was a substance of we didn't person clip to drawback it, by the times we got the lives out, which was much important than the spell container and the meds," said Honseler.

The household besides moved rapidly to evacuate their animals but couldn't find their indoor-outdoor cat, Ollie.

They searched arsenic agelong arsenic imaginable earlier the flames forced them to permission without her.

"We didn't deliberation she was gonna marque it, truthful we are precise very blessed that we recovered her the adjacent day," said Honseler.

Now - they are successful limbo arsenic they effort to find if they volition beryllium capable to rebuild.

"Still trying to fig retired however to spell astir it with the homeowners insurance, wherever radical tin onshore truthful we tin spell connected with our lives, spell to work," said Woolsey.

They cognize an accidental for their full household to unrecorded unneurotic comfortably connected this burned spot successful the aboriginal is not likely. But they are conscionable grateful for the beardown assemblage support.

"The region of Mariposa is highly generous, radical person been pouring successful with babe items, etc.," said Woolsey.

"Do you cognize the motto successful Mariposa is Mariposa Strong, and I spot it is Mariposa Strong now," said Honseler.

They are besides having occupation uncovering a abstraction presently large capable for their 2 aged large Dane dogs - arsenic they are each staying successful abstracted homes.

They besides person a GoFundMe arsenic they enactment to fig retired their adjacent steps.

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