'Unbelievable' chainsaw art comes from the remains of the Creek Fire

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - As the hills adjacent Shaver Lake crook greenish erstwhile again, astir five years aft the monolithic Creek Fire tore done the Sierra National Forest, the trees that were destroyed are being turned into thing caller arsenic well.

Chainsaw creator Michael Scott is utilizing the trees destroyed successful the occurrence to carve retired sculptures, transforming calamity into beauty.

“If I’m capable to carve thing and bash thing I love, and bring a grin to people’s faces, I’m honored to bash so,” Scott said.

Image courtesy of Mountain Mike's Chainsaw Carvings

Scott remembers moving from Fresno to the Shaver Lake country conscionable earlier the Creek Fire broke retired successful 2020. The blaze burned done astir 400,000 acres crossed Fresno and Madera counties, 1 of the largest wildfires successful California history.

“It was scary,” Scott said. “The entity was red. It looked similar you were successful a warfare oregon something. There wasn’t overmuch slumber for people, for sure.”

When flames came adjacent to his home, Scott and his household had to evacuate, yet leaving the authorities wholly to enactment with household successful Oregon. But adjacent aft the occurrence was extinguished, the interaction remained.

“There are plentifulness of burned trees up here. They’re inactive plentiful,” helium said.

At first, helium didn’t cognize what to bash with the changeless reminders of the fire. But 1 night, portion browsing YouTube retired of boredom, Scott came crossed a woodcarving video.

“Next time I was successful my store with a Dremel trying it,” helium said. “A week aboriginal I picked up a chainsaw and perfectly loved it.”

Since then, he’s turned his hobby into a business, crafting bears, owls, and different sculptures from fire-damaged wood. For him, it’s a mode of reusing what was lost.

“It’s bully to reuse that worldly alternatively than conscionable fto it rot and spell to nothing,” Scott said.

His enactment present decorates homes passim the Shaver Lake area, including astatine his person Helder Domingos’ place.

“It was truly amazing,” Domingos said. “They’d conscionable been 2 histrion trunks sitting present for years. The extremity merchandise was unbelievable.”

What began arsenic a idiosyncratic flight has go a awesome of resilience, turning reminders of nonaccomplishment into thing that brings joy.