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Amid Smoke, Ash, Wildfire-scarred Paradise Rebuilds

Associated Press

   SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - When flames chased Chuck and Janie Dee down
   the mountain two years ago, they thought they'd never be back.

   Yet there they were Sunday, parking a camper next to their dirt lot and
   the shell of what had been their swimming pool, excited for their role
   in restoring their hometown of Paradise to what it was before the
   deadliest wildfire in California history destroyed their home and most
   of the community.

   They installed a septic tank. They filed for a building permit. They
   were really doing it.

   The couple made it three days before they had to flee again. They awoke
   after daybreak Wednesday to darkness, the sky blackened by smoke as the
   ridge above them glowed orange. Their minds went blank as fear
   reintroduced itself.

   Heading down the mountain again, Janie Dee couldn't help but doubt
   their decision to return.

   "I wondered if we were really doing the right thing," she said.

   The fire never made it to Paradise as other foothill communities bore
   the terrible brunt, suffering thousands of destroyed structures. But
   the flames paused the hopeful, exciting and -- at times -- frustrating
   work of rebuilding a town that has become synonymous with heartbreak.

   In the nearly two years since the Camp Fire, Paradise has tried to
   entice people back. The road sign heading into town still boasts of a
   population of more than 26,000. But the reality is closer to 4,000 now,
   local leaders say.

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