By Candace Braun
Naples Daily News (Florida)

GOLDEN GATE, Fla. — As families waited to hear whether the fire that consumed 800 acres of land in Golden Gate had harmed their homes, two men fought to save them. Though these men may have never met, they relied on one another's efforts Friday to contain the fire.

Just before 4 p.m. on Thursday Golden Gate Fire Rescue Engineer Scott Wilson got the call about the Golden Gate fire. He was on the third truck out. Fueled by adrenaline, he said he felt a sense of excitement as he rushed to the scene.

"As a firefighter, this is something you constantly prepare and train for," he said. "There's this rush of energy when you hear about a fire that makes you want to do what you can to stop it."

Wilson battled the flames until 3 a.m., when he was released from duty. About five hours later, he was heading back out to face the fires. Though he didn't have long to sleep, he said the sheer energy of fighting the fire kept him from feeling too fatigued.

"It's a little exhausting, but that comes with the territory," Wilson said.

Wilson may not know it, but he has Myakka River District forest ranger J.P. Desilets to thank for helping him tame those flames. After Desilets finished fighting a fire in his native Charlotte County Thursday night, he woke up at 6 a.m. to use a tractor to widen the fire lines surrounding the blaze.

By creating these roads within the dirt, he said it helps keep the fire from expanding. The foresters' tractor work also acts as a roadway so that brush trucks can get into forested areas to fight fires, Senior Forester Mike Weston said.

"Most people don't keep us in mind until we're there," Desilets said. "Some people came out and thanked us, which was nice."

Desilets said this was one of the biggest fires he's ever fought, and said the damage was relatively low considering its size.

"It's very unfortunate that we lost three (houses)," Wilson said. "I wish we could say we didn't lose any."

Home Defense

Inching across the yard on her hands and knees, Isabel Rodriguez, 42, felt she had done her best to ensure that her house was safe, but as the dense, black fog from the Golden Gate fire surrounded her, she said she wasn't sure if she was.

"The air was so thick that I couldn't breathe," she said. "It was choking me."

Rodriguez and her nephew, Juan Correa, 29, said they held rags over their noses to keep from breathing in the air. Since their Everglades Boulevard house was not under a mandatory evacuation, they said they decided to stay because they felt the fire was far away enough that it wasn't a serious threat.

That all changed, however, when the winds began to shift its direction.

"Everyone (in the neighborhood) was standing outside, watching the smoke from across the street, and suddenly we started seeing it getting closer to us in no time," Rodriguez said.

Correa, along with other neighbors, turned on the sprinklers to the house to avoid damaging the property. He said he thinks that's a major reason why the flames didn't harm the home.

"A fine (for breaking watering regulations) would be nothing compared to saving our house," he said.

Animal Rescue

More than two dozen animals were taken to the Collier County Domestic Animal Services shelter during the fire.

Animal Control Officers rescued a total of 27 animals including two goats, one horse and 24 dogs.

Most of the rescued animals were returned to their owners Friday.

Animal Services evacuated owned pets at the request of the Collier County Sheriff's Office. The agency safely removed the animals from properties and homes to secure their safety.

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