My sister’s family stayed during a voluntary evacuation yesterday. They have three pets and no family in the area, although the family of friends did offer them a place to go. So far the fires are in the distance and they are safe. About half the people in their neighborhood have stayed behind. The local police department is doing a good job of keeping them informed with an automated phone system and they will also drive up and down the streets with bullhorns if they have to evacuate. Their cars are packed and ready to go. Those are my brother in-law’s footprints in the ash on their driveway. Everything is covered with a thick layer of the gray dust. Carrie said it makes her sad to see that blanket of ash, knowing that some of it came from other people’s homes.