Cleveland family loses everything to wildfire: 'There's a lot of memories'

A Cleveland family, like hundreds of others, lost everything when the wildfires ripped through their home.

David and Cassandra Dekker’s granddaughter saw the flames first. They had just minutes to get out and didn't have enough time to grab anything.

Hard and heartbreaking doesn't even begin to describe it, but they’re just grateful they’re all ok.

A home is more than a house. Cassandra Dekker can still see it all: the five bedrooms where her children grew up.

She said it's about so much more than losing things; it’s about memories and special moments, made even more special now that they've faded.

“I will never walk down my hallway again and see the images clear in my head of things that my kids did when they were growing up. Never. That’s the biggest thing that hits me,” Cassandra said.

16 years in that home, and the fire destroyed everything in one night.

“Grabbed the people,” said David. “That’s it.”

The flames were so intense. This used to be their F-150.

“Melted all the aluminum out of it, melted windows,” David said.

He and Cassandra are shocked by the destruction but also by what survived.

“I don’t understand it,” he said.

But what David does understand is they will rebuild.

“Yeah, there’s a lot of memories,” he said. “I just keep looking forward to making new ones. That’s all you can do.”

David and Cassandra said right now they are staying with family. They have received clothing donations, which is a huge help.