Tuesday, June 6, 2000 | 11:23 a.m.
COLD CREEK -- Nestled in the shadow of the Spring Mountains, the 60 families who live in the village of Cold Creek need only look out their windows to see the damage a wildfire can cause.
A 6,500-acre scar of open land stretches across the northern slope of Bonanza Peak above Cold Creek with only a dead tree here and there to mark what was once a thriving forest.
"The dead trees up there look like twisted-up pretzels now," Cold Creek volunteer firefighter Mike Adams said. "The 1981 fire took out that whole mountainside."
Nineteen years later the lack of trees and heavy brush on Bonanza Peak may be what will save Cold Creek from the Buck Springs fire that is threatening the town about 60 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
"We're kind of lucky that we had that fire in 1981, because now there is not a lot to burn up there if the fire comes over the mountain," Cold Springs resident Gloria Zech said.
With the devastation of a recent wildfire that burned hundreds of homes in Los Alamos, N.M., fresh in their minds, Zech and other residents are readying contingency plans that include packing cars with valuables and mementos in case the fire becomes more than a threat to the residents and their most cherished possessions.
In June 1981 Cold Creek residents toughed out the wildfire that came much closer to the town and forced the evacuation of picnic and campground areas. That fire destroyed ponderosa pines, Douglas fir and bristlecone pine trees that were more than 1,000 years old.
The 2,000-acre Buck Springs fire is still about seven miles away from Cold Creek, but the town's volunteer fire department and residents aren't taking any chances as the blaze brings back memories of 1981. Firefighters are manning the town's creek making sure it doesn't get blocked and water continues to run down to a pond being used by a giant Sikorsky Skycrane helicopter to drop loads of water on the fire over the ridge.
"We're not freaking out yet, but people are packing their art, photos, keepsakes and important papers," Patty Edwards, a seven-year Cold Creek resident said. "I've got my motorhome ready to go."
Zech had her wedding pictures packed away in her Ford Explorer Monday afternoon as she made runs to Indian Springs for ice, water and sandwiches for firefighters stationed in Cold Creek Canyon.
A thick blanket of smoke that can be seen 14 miles away in Indian Springs covers the canyon, sending some residents out of town, including some horse owners who wanted to make sure they got their animals away from any possible danger.
Karmeta McKeever got her refrigerator, washing machine, television and other belongings and headed for a Las Vegas storage space.
"I just wanted to play it safe, because we really don't know what is going on," McKeever said.
Despite the smoke, wild horses, elk and deer still roam nearby and even in the town that is made up of small canyons and gullies. With only solar power and no phone service the hardy band of Cold Creek residents aren't strangers to inconvenience, and most have decided to stay, resident Jackie Bach said.
Sunday night the town was treated to a show as flames exploded through trees licking over the top of Bonanza Peak, Adams said.
"We're concerned about the fire, but we're a tight-knit community, and I think we'll still be here when this is over," Bach said. "The Forest Service has been going door to door updating us on the fire, and it's far enough away that we'll have enough notice if we have to leave."
As Bach talked to Zech Monday, Zech told her friend that she had prayed that they would still be there after the fire is contained.
Bach responded, "We'll fight it with garden hoses if we have to."
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