Kyra and Ben Phelps moved into their home in Buckhorn Ranch back in March. They loved the land, the views and the house itself. Now, they have been away for a full week from the home they love so much.
The Phelps family evacuated from their home, which sits near Masonville east of County Road 27, in between the main arm of the Cameron Peak Fire and the spot fire thrown to the east during high winds that have hit the fire over the last week. But their situation is not like many others, as Kyra and Ben evacuated with their 1-month-old premature twin sons Cam and Wes, Kyra’s mother Renata Sieck and their 3-year-old black lab Marley.
When the area was under voluntary evacuation, Kyra was still pregnant with her twin sons. When they were born, they spent a couple of weeks in the NICU before being sent home, getting to spend a week there before new evacuations were ordered.
Kyra said she and her husband were wakened by the mandatory alert when it went out early Wednesday morning.
“When we got the alert we were really surprised,” Kyra said. “(We) woke up that morning and realized that things had significantly changed.”
Kyra said they were not keen on leaving, especially with two babies in tow. While they were hoping to stay in the area regardless of the evacuation orders, they quickly realized that the air quality and smoke were getting so bad, that for the safety of their sons they “had to get out of (there).”
“I got the text message so I knew it was coming,” Ben said. “By the time a deputy had gotten to our door I had just changed a dirty diaper and had a baby in my arms and acknowledged that it was mandatory and needed to get out.”
Sieck, who was evacuated from her house during the Hayman Fire, said she recognized the dangerous signs when they came.
“I know how quickly things can change and how scary that is,” Sieck said. “When I saw … the cloud and the wind was coming right at us, the cloud itself was kind of creating its own climate. We just said we have to drive out of here, so we packed it up and drove south.”
Kyra, Ben, their two sons, Sieck and Marley spent the first night away from home at a friend’s house in Denver.
“We didn’t take any valuables,” Kyra said. “We took passports and documents we needed, but we really just packed for the boys thinking we would be gone one or two nights. After watching the updates we have been getting … we started to realize we would maybe be out longer.”
Kyra said the first night of evacuation in their friend’s house was incredibly tough on her.
“We had babies that essentially had just gotten out of the hospital,” she said. “That first night away when I had to take the boys away from their home where we felt secure and were trying to come up with a schedule … It is just emotional. That first night was really hard.”
After realizing they would most likely be displaced for longer than anticipated, they worked with the Red Cross and were placed in a hotel in Fort Collins. After a few days and with the help of an insurance claim, they were able to upgrade from a standard single room to a larger, two-room one.
Kyra and Ben said dealing with the evacuation and their two children is not as bad as it seems, as Kyra said when you have twins “you don’t even have time to think about it.” They agreed that, right now, they are just rolling with what happens.
“If we didn’t have the basic needs to take care of the boys, I would not be doing well; but we do,” Kyra said. “We have seen them get stronger since we have left the house. We are just trying to focus on the positive.”
Kyra said that she, Ben and the boys are also lucky to have the support from friends and family, especially Sieck, during this time.
“It is a challenge, but you just face it and say OK this is what we are going to do next,” Sieck said. “I am very grateful that I have this time to be able to do that. The more hands the better.”
As they wait to return to their home, Kyra said they are “one of the fortunate ones.” Their house sits in a grassland area with less concentrated timber. While they are in between the main arm of the Cameron Peak Fire and the new spot fire to the east, photos from their neighbors who remained in the area and daily updates have made her feel more confidant about the safety of their house.
Kyra said while she knows it is going to be tough to see the damage that was done by the fire, she knows the community she has become a part of is going to rebuild stronger together.
She said the support she has seen from those she knows and those working to help people who are displaced has been incredible.
“With everything going on in the world and so much hate … this has just restored my faith in humanity and trust in people really caring for and loving one another,” Kyra said. “It has brought our neighbors together. The way people have acted towards each other and the care and the love we have seen from our friends, family, Red Cross and regulatory agencies have made me feel so good.”
Kyra and Ben agreed that while this will make for an interesting baby book entry for their boys, starting in a pandemic and having to flee from a fire, they are happy they were able to make it out OK.
“That was the biggest thing was worrying about their health in the pandemic, just worrying about getting them sick,” Ben said. “Overall we feel fortunate that our whole family is together and we all got out.”
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October 21, 2020 at 10:13AM
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From NICU to a hotel: Cameron Peak Fire forces family of 5 to evacuate with 2 infants - Loveland Reporter-Herald
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