Fairbanks, AK - Many Mushers in the community of Two Rivers have packed up their sled dogs and headed for dogs yards outside the community as a more than 62 thousand acre wildfire bears down on them. An evacuation notice issued Sunday for the small community outside Fairbanks is still in effect Monday.
On Sunday afternoon, Two Rivers resident Melinda Shore unloaded thirteen sled dogs at a dog yard high in the hills north of Fairbanks. Surprisingly, she was smiling. “I’ve got so much insurance, so I’m in good shape there," she laughs. "I mean I don’t want to lose my house, but on the other hand, I don’t have a bath tub and I’ve been talking about a bathroom remodel for a long time so this may be… whatever.”
This is the second time in a week Shore has evacuated her home 21 miles out Chena Hot Springs Road. She was running errands in town when she got word officials had issued an evacuation order for her neighborhood. “So, I immediately turned around and drove back and it was just so dark ahead of us. It wasn’t even like night. It was like a bruise in the sky.” Shore says ash rained from the sky as she loaded her truck and took off. She stopped at a local gas station for a hot dog and coffee on her way out. She says other residents weren’t having as easy a time. “Some were really upset. I’m in a really fortunate position, but a lot of people don’t even know where they are going," she says. "I talked to a lot of people back in Two Rivers who said they didn’t know where they’d be able to go.”
Many residents are staying with friends. People with livestock and other animals can set up camp at the Tanana Valley Fairgrounds. Ten people took shelter Sunday night at the Red Cross Evacuation Center inside Weller Elementary School. A total of 120 adults and 57 children registered with officials at checkpoints manned by Alaska State Troopers on their way out of town Sunday.