Homeowners find heroes amid ashes

Sometimes after a fire, homeowners realize they didn't have enough insurance.

Al Hanke and Eileen Dana realized they have great neighbors.

"Everybody was helpful," said Dana.

"This neighborhood is awesome," said Hanke.

Firefighters were called out to the 3300 block of Dilday Drive about 3:30 p.m. Sunday where they found the north end of Dana's home and the south end of Hanke's home ablaze, said Fire Chief Stacey Giomi.

No one was home at the time.

Hanke and his daughter Megan had driven to Susanville to scout out camping locations while Hanke's wife Doris worked at Costco.

Dana, her two adult children and three grandchildren were out running errands.

As she walked into the Walmart on Topsy Lane, Dana and grandson Donovan saw two black plumes of smoke coming from the direction of their home. Donovan commented, "That could be our house," she recalled. Then her phone rang. A neighbor said it was her house.

Another neighbor contacted Doris at work, said Megan.

By the time each of the homeowners arrived on scene, neighbor Steve Mackinder had already opened up Hanke's home to free his dogs.

The first one inside Dana's home was 15-year-old D.J. Parker, whom she now calls her hero.

"When I got outside there were flames higher than the house," said D.J. "I just twisted the knob on the front door, ran in and called the dogs' names. Then they finally ran out and then I ran out and the house just like blew up."

Up and down the quiet street, people heard a series of pops and booms, said Mackinder.

Leroy Bolick said they rattled the windows.

"I thought someone drove across my lawn and hit my house," he said.

Fire investigators are unsure what caused the small explosions, or how the fire started between the two homes.

"As near as we can tell at this point those (explosions) did not play any factor in the start of the fire," said Giomi on Monday.

He said the cause is under investigation. Damage is estimated at $100,000 per property.

And while fire crews worked successfully to save the remainder of the homes, the neighbors began a mini-humanitarian mission, said Dana.

"Some took care of my dogs, others took care of my grandkids. They supplied us with drinks. I got food from every house on this street," she said.

One neighbor took Hanke's freezer from his garage for safekeeping, another his gun safe.

A third took in Dana's freezer and later in the day when she emptied the food from her refrigerator, now useless without electricity, somebody kindly scooped up the garbage bag and disposed of it for her.

Sunday night, the Hankes stayed in their motor home, hooked up to Mackinder's electricity and water.

Dana stayed with a daughter in Dayton.

And on Monday, the families met again, standing outside their ruined homes chatting about rebuilding and laughing at how getting upset didn't do anyone any good.

"Nobody's hurt. The houses are still standing," said Megan. "Nothing horrible got damaged."

"And the animals are OK," said Dana. "God took care of us. All of us."