By LAURA QUEZADA News Review Staff Writer– When the Borel Fire ravaged Kern River Valley and people were forced to evacuate, many found shelter in Ridgecrest and down the road at Robbers Roost. The Desert Empire Fairgrounds offered, “We are open for large animal evacuation. We have smaller pens for pigs, goats, and sheep, and we have 20 horse stalls.” Local hotels lowered their rates and waived pet fees. Ridgecrest residents flooded the shelters with goods and offers of support. So much so that Lester Fuzell, a Red Cross volunteer, posted a message on Facebook thanking folks, and while saying what was needed to be taken to the shelter, he emphasized, “Not everyone, so talk amongst yourself decide who’s going to get them.”
Initially, the News Review was not planning to cover this story. After all, we have learned that that’s what Ridgecrest does. We look out for and help each other. But the generosity of Robbers Roost could not be overlooked.
“The quickest business meeting we ever had,” Carlos Rivera, co-owner of Robbers Roost, told us about his conversation with his business partner John Knudson. “When we found out the fires were as bad as they were. I was like, ‘Maybe we could do something here.’ I called him. It took about 45 seconds, and he said, ‘Yes. What do you got in mind?’ So we shut down the store. We shut down the restaurant. And we set it up as an evacuation center. He said, ‘I like it. Do it.’ Done.”
Not only did they close their business, but they fed people for free from their supply.
With proof that their home was in the evacuation zone, folks were put up for a night in the restaurant where the community had donated beds and bedrolls. After that, they were moved to other accommodations on the Ranch. Although still under construction, there is a building that is being converted into a Senior Living complex. Construction stopped, and folks moved in. The central air is working, and it is comfortable, although missing a few light fixtures. Rivera is a caregiver for his mother. He tells us, “I’ve been to a lot of the senior living places that broke my heart. We want this to be more of a home setting.”
The Williams family, evacuees from Bodfish, have become like family to Robbers Roost employees.
Reese Williams II and his family are living in one unit. Williams, whose father is on life support, is a caregiver to his parents and also has his 9-month-old baby and wife under his watch. Mom Jennifer Williams tells us, “At the time it broke out, we had nine people in our home in Bodfish. We had five grandchildren from 15 to 19. Two of the children were able to be dropped off in Onyx on our way here. So we wound up with the rest of us here.”
“It’s good to know there’s good people out there still,” Reese tells us. “You don’t see that anymore. Carlos and his crew are absolutely amazing.” The feeling is mutual. Rivera says, “It started out we’re meeting strangers that’s turning into friends and family.” If Rivera needs to leave the grounds for long periods of time, Reese will hold down the fort.
Robbers Roost is an interesting location. It doesn’t look like much from the road, with its hand-painted “Ghost Town” signs, but when you take a tour on Rivera’s golf cart, you can’t help but wonder what is the history of this place. Rivera tells us, “This was originally the town of Armistead. It used to be an old stagecoach-stopping place back in the cowboy days. The name ‘Robbers Roost’ actually came from a rock formation out here. There was a gentleman by the name of Vasquez who was not a good guy. He would come down and rob people in
the area.” Vasquez and his gang would go to the rocks, which were on high ground. They could see the law coming and the law could never catch them.
When locals learned about the shelter, they donated. Restaurants cooked meals, Buttermilk Acres told Rivera to send folks to them for free gas if they were heading out to faraway places to stay with family, and more. “As it progressed, it started escalating. What do you need? We need beds. We started hearing from families up here, ‘We need diapers, wipes.’ We started realizing after the first two days cars kept coming. It went from just trying to give people a place to lay down and gather themselves. It’s grown in a way we couldn’t have imagined now. A lot of people you’ll see around here are our vets. 90% of them are military in one way or other.”
Robbers Roost’s generosity isn’t limited to their ranch. When hearing about a man with horses out of feed, Rivera was able to get a donation of feed from Gateway Hardware and take it to the horses. Firefighters allowed them to pass and escorted them to the site. If they learn about a need in the fire zone, they fill it.
There was no hesitation when Sierra Sands Unified School District (SSUSD) Superintendent Dr. April Moore learned of the need for a location for a Red Cross Shelter. In a video shared on the SSUSD Facebook page, Ridgecrest Police Department Chief Mario Ysit says Moore “immediately said that she would make her facilities available as soon as she could and started working on getting her staff in to transform the gym into a shelter.” Moore gave a shout-out to the Salvation Army, saying, “They’re coordinating all donations at this time. If you’d like to contribute or volunteer, please reach out to them in times of crisis.”
Evacuee Terri Birch loves on her dog Indy at the BHS Gym evacuation site.
On August 1, the Red Cross announced, “In coordination with our emergency partners, the Red Cross shelter at Burroughs High School in Ridgecrest is now closed. For nearly a week, volunteers and our community partners helped provide shelter and relief to dozens of people and pets displaced by the wildfire in Ridgecrest. Over the last couple of days, we said our final farewell to shelter residents who sought shelter services this week. For those who still require shelter, our shelter at Tehachapi Education Center (126 South Snyder Ave., Tehachapi, CA 93561) remains open for those evacuated from the Borel Fire.”
We spoke to Red Cross Public Affairs Volunteer Dave Wagner on July 25. The Red Cross is a well-oiled machine, with some of its volunteers having personal experience being evacuated themselves. The previous night, they had housed 24 people, 24 dogs, and 19 cats. The evacuees were provided breakfast. The Salvation Army brought lunch and dinner. There was a nurse on staff, an EMT, and well-trained volunteers. They are prepared to help with any medical need. “If you evacuate quickly and you don’t have your prescription medicine or you didn’t bring your wheelchair or your walker or your CPAP machine, that’s what our health services will do. They’ll contact your doctor, or they’ll contact public health, and they’ll be able to get your prescriptions for you if you need a set of eyeglasses or a CPAP machine or something like that.”
A Red Cross volunteer evaluates an evacuee’s knee injury.
In addition, “We try to keep them informed. That’s why we have the Forest Service come in and give them information. We have the County Fire Department come in and give them information.” Wagner tells us, “People who are left here, the people who are hurt, are still here do not know if their house is still standing or not. And I think that’s harder than knowing because not knowing causes a lot of anguish, a lot of anxiety, but this is a nice little community here. Everybody sat at that table and had their meals together and played games together and talked and got to know each other. And some of them actually were sad to leave when they left today. There were a lot of tears, tears of happiness for what’s gone on here at the Red Cross shelter.”
The Red Cross does three things: They try to get people prepared. They respond with shelters. They help people recover.
The Red Cross suggests that people download their app, which will alert and inform. Wagner encourages folks to go to redcross.org and hit the volunteer button. “We’d love to have people help out. We have a group that meets in their community or close by, and we can take a few classes mostly online, how to be a shelter, and do public affairs if you’d like to do that.”
