'It's kind of grotesque, very grotesque, it's very awful'

Marion Thornton, 89, and her husband Austin, 91, are one of the original 15 families who moved into Oakridge Mobile Home Park 29 years ago.

Their mobile home is one of the roughly 140 that remained standing after the Sayre fire swept into the Sylmar Park and wiped out the majority of its 600 units.

The couple waited nearly seven hours Monday along with hundreds of others at Sylmar High School for a shuttle into the park about two miles away so they could look at their home. She knew the home was still standing because her neighbors told her so, but she wanted to see it for herself after leaving it around shortly before midnight Friday.

Shortly before 3 p.m. she finally got her chance.

"It's kind of grotesque, very grotesque, it's very awful," Thornton said. "Anything I could say to you, it would be awful. When I drove to this park, I didn't know I was there..there's not a grass, no lawn, nothing."

Her home, in the middle of the park, was untouched by fire.

"It looked beautiful, just like I left it, except for a few things -- my bed wasn't made," she laughed. "That was a shame," she joked. "Everything was exactly like I left it. I can't believe it."

The bus ride in was difficult.

"It took my breath away, a lot," she said. "I'm a pretty old lady, but I've got a good strong heart right now because I'm going to live through this for a while. I didn't feel like I was back home yet, I don't think I'm home yet."

She toured the community with her husband and daughter-in-law, she stopped in front of a neighbor's home that was destroyed.

"They're crying about it, and it's very hard," Thornton said. "I want to cry too, but I don't know how to cry anymore. I feel like I've lost my life, you know? But we're going to go on with life."

She felt struck by the loss of a community she has seen grown over nearly three decades.

The mobile home park has been struck before by Mother Nature. In the 1994 Northridge quake about 50 homes were burned, but the damage then did not compare.

"We've been here a long time, and I don't want to live anywhere else," Thornton said. "My daughter-in-law doesn't think I can stay, but I said 'No no, this is my home, and as long as I can afford to live here, I will. These are old people in this park, there's some young people, but there's a lot of old people. I feel so sorry for these people by themselves. I've got a husband, I have something to be thankful for."

--Tami Abdollah

Comments

[spiffy]

I remember when the Oakridge was first opened. It's always been a very nice park---a model park because there were no age restrictions. I hope to heaven they replace all those homes and it reverts to what it was. With a long recession ahead of us, even if the residents don't want to move back, lots of other people need affordable housing. But NO MORE CONDOS! Condos are becoming an eyesore, in my opinion.

[BIFF]

I know the loss and feeling of everyone who lost their home and haven. I had a house up in Cedar Glen (Bigbear), that burnt down as far and as clean as anything can burn. in it were my history archives, thousands and thousands of photographs, keepsakes and record albums, family and area history manuscripts (many unpublished), and lots more 'special' things. it was my retreat.

The pain of it all, the loss, and even the new building codes for SB County. Know what? I just split the lot and gave each half to my neighbors so they could rebuild within code. And left. Never went back to see it. don't want to either. too many memories and a huge loss.

[Kanani]

This is so sad. These people don't have a lot of money. Some, will probably never recover and have even a mobile home to call their own. Condolences to all.