Sep 9, 2020
(CNN) Allison Hargett, her husband Tyler, and their 6-year-old daughter Lilly were camping at Detroit Lake State Park with their friends, Tim and Adamma Dye.
The lake is southeast of Salem, Oregon and is a popular destination for boating, water sports and fishing, according to the park’s website.
The Hargett family arrived to the campgrounds on Monday with their boat. A trip that was supposed to be relaxing quickly took a turn for the worst as they received evacuation orders around 1 a.m. on Tuesday.
Allison Hargett told CNN her family loaded in their vehicle with the boat to tow and fled the area as the wildfire loomed.
Their friends also evacuated in their own vehicle ahead of them, she said.
As the Hargetts were fleeing, an orange glow could be seen peeking through the tall trees and red embers floated around them like snowflakes. As they entered Mill City, which is also under evacuation orders, their vehicle ran out of gas.
“(Our friends) were in front of us and saw that we pulled over and turned around, tossed their stuff in the back seat and told us to get in and let’s go,” Allison told CNN on Tuesday.
The family had to ditch their vehicle and boat in a store parking lot to assure their safety so they could continue to evacuate.
“We completely ran out of gas and would’ve been stranded,” she said. “They saved us.” … Read more.
