Elvie Drinkwater, 16, was among residents ordered to evacuate their homes in Capelulo, Conwy, after a major incident was declared as a fast-moving wildfire spread across Conwy Mountain in Wales. The blaze came within feet of her family home, forcing the family to flee in panic.
Recalling the terrifying moments before her family fled, Elvie said she could hear and smell the wildfire creeping closer despite not being able to see the flames. She said: “You could hear it, you could smell it, but you couldn’t see it. It sounded like cracking, like popcorn in the microwave… crunching.”
Evacuation and uncertainty
Police had warned Elvie’s family on Sunday morning to pack essential belongings in case the grass fire reached their area. The family fled in a panic, unsure if they would ever return home. The GCSE student admitted she had initially believed the blaze was too far away to threaten their home and later felt “disappointed” she had not been better prepared to leave at short notice.
She said: “Knowing that there’s like so many things I want to bring with me, and I just can’t go back. Then there’s that fear, not knowing if I’m coming back. Is my house still going to be there? How long am I going to be away for?”
Return to devastation
After hours of uncertainty, the family were finally told their home had escaped the flames, although it was another two days before Elvie, her mum and her partner were allowed to return. Their dog, Marley, was forced to stay elsewhere during the evacuation because he was not allowed to stay at the hotel where the family were put up.
Despite the terrifying ordeal, Elvie said she always believed firefighters had the situation under control. She said: “The firefighters did have a good handle on the situation.” But returning home to the scenes of burned fields and trees was heartbreaking. She added: “It was really sad driving down the pass and seeing all the devastation. We moved here in 2021, and we did choose this house because of all the natural beauty, everything surrounding us, and now it’s all gone. Heather takes about 10 years to come back, so it’ll be a long time, but it will come back.”
Although the major incident in Conwy has now been stood down, firefighters were still tackling several active blazes on Tuesday evening. The wildfire led to the evacuation of 36 homes.
