Cuyamaca Volunteer Fire Chief Loses All, Moves On
Seven Out Of Eight Firefighters Lose Homes
POSTED: 4:46 p.m. PST November 25, 2003
UPDATED: 5:43 p.m. PST November 25, 2003
SAN DIEGO -- During the Cedar Fire, Cuyamaca firefighters lost their homes while trying to save their neighbors, 10News reported.
One month after the fires began, 10News Reporter Mark Matthews goes one-on-one with Cuyamaca's volunteer battalion chief, Carl Schweikert, (pictured, left).
As he surveyed the ruin of his business and home, Schweikert's one-liners come with a grimace.
"Unfortunately, when you sign the papers for full replacement insurance, it's full replacement except for the fine print," Schweikert said.
Schweikert spends his days trying to list all his tools -- hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tools -- that burned inside his
Dale Ernhardt Collector's Edition tool boxes he bought just six months ago.
"They look a little older now. There's 30 years worth of equipment and tools in here," Schweikert said.
When the Cedar Fire burned through Schweikert's shop, tempered steel puddled and a four-gas analyzer vaporized.
Schweikert wasn't in Julian to help his wife evacuate their 5-year old and two dogs. Instead, Schweikert and the rest of Cuyamaca's volunteer firefighters were in town on the fire line.
"There's an Associated Press photograph, (pictured, right), in the trailer of a bunch of paid firefighters watching as my volunteers 'fire out,'" Schweikert said.
"Firing out" is a firefighter's term for setting back fires around a building you are trying to save. The volunteers fired out their own station as a 300-foot wall of flame came at them.
"As it passed us, we got into our rigs. Any structure standing, we attempted to save," Schweikert told 10News.
As they fought the fire, seven of the eight volunteers -- including Schweikert -- lost their own homes.
It was a story that briefly put the small volunteer department on the world stage.
A month out of the spotlight, the grim reality sets in that it will be years before he, and the town, will recover.
"It's one step at a time. When you have a huge wall to climb, you take it step by step," Schweikert said.
Cuyamaca's battalion chief said even though most of his crew lost their homes in the fire, they are continuing to volunteer and answer calls at the Fire Department.
One month after the fires began, 10News Reporter Mark Matthews goes one-on-one with Cuyamaca's volunteer battalion chief, Carl Schweikert, (pictured, left).
As he surveyed the ruin of his business and home, Schweikert's one-liners come with a grimace.
"Unfortunately, when you sign the papers for full replacement insurance, it's full replacement except for the fine print," Schweikert said.
Schweikert spends his days trying to list all his tools -- hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tools -- that burned inside his
Dale Ernhardt Collector's Edition tool boxes he bought just six months ago.
"They look a little older now. There's 30 years worth of equipment and tools in here," Schweikert said.
When the Cedar Fire burned through Schweikert's shop, tempered steel puddled and a four-gas analyzer vaporized.
Schweikert wasn't in Julian to help his wife evacuate their 5-year old and two dogs. Instead, Schweikert and the rest of Cuyamaca's volunteer firefighters were in town on the fire line.
"There's an Associated Press photograph, (pictured, right), in the trailer of a bunch of paid firefighters watching as my volunteers 'fire out,'" Schweikert said.
"Firing out" is a firefighter's term for setting back fires around a building you are trying to save. The volunteers fired out their own station as a 300-foot wall of flame came at them.
"As it passed us, we got into our rigs. Any structure standing, we attempted to save," Schweikert told 10News.
As they fought the fire, seven of the eight volunteers -- including Schweikert -- lost their own homes.
It was a story that briefly put the small volunteer department on the world stage.
A month out of the spotlight, the grim reality sets in that it will be years before he, and the town, will recover.
"It's one step at a time. When you have a huge wall to climb, you take it step by step," Schweikert said.
Cuyamaca's battalion chief said even though most of his crew lost their homes in the fire, they are continuing to volunteer and answer calls at the Fire Department. Copyright 2003 by TheSanDiegoChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
