Sunday, December 27, 2020 |
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ANDY ATKINSON / MAIL TRIBUNE
Ross Munro, maintenance manager for the Anjou Club Apartments, talks about some of the damage caused by the Almeda fire.
‘I’M JUST GLAD IT’S STILL STANDING’
Talent apartment managers lauded as heroes for action as Almeda fire came near
By John Darling
for the Mail Tribune
W
hile businesses burned madly on three sides, Ross Munro, assistant manager of Talent’s 181-unit Anjou Club Apartments, and his wife, Lisa Joss, fought encroaching flames through the night, fetching water from the swimming pool in five-gallon containers and driving them to hot spots around the perimeter, putting them out by hand. “Afraid? No, I wasn’t afraid. I had way too much adrenaline pumping through me,” said Munro, an Ashland
resident whose daughter and granddaughter live at Anjou. “I’m just glad it’s still standing.” Munro described the night as an epic struggle against extreme heat that was setting fire to shrubs and trees along Valley View Road and later along the northwest corner of Anjou, overlooking the giant Oak Valley conflagration. That blaze crept up an embankment and singed a half-dozen Anjou units, which were put out by firefighters who soon left to handle gigantic flames on Talent Avenue. Especially upsetting, he said, were explosions of propane tanks and
bullets across the street. He even found a bullet shell on Anjou grounds. To residents commenting in a Facebook thread, Munro was recognized as a hero. Leah Cates, who took the couple to lunch to thank them, said, “He saved a lot of homes. They deserve hero medals. I am absolutely blown away by the heroes in our community.” Shanti McGinley said the couple should get gift certificates for dinner, spa day and flowers, adding, “This warms my heart immeasurably.” SEE APARTMENT, PAGE 34
