Maria Townsend is a resident who refused to evacuate during a Los Angeles wildfire.
History[]
When a wildfire threatened to overtake their neighborhood, Maria and her husband, Terry, were subject to an evacuation. Despite this, they decided not to leave, saying they'd always stayed before. They helped clear brush from other yards and close windows and doors to prevent the fire from spreading. While they worked, they talked about the things their neighbors had done wrong that made their homes more vulnerable to being destroyed by fire. After embers hit the grass and started small fires, they helped put the fires out. When Maria had an asthma attack, her first in years, she was forced to go inside their home, which was acting as their base. Terry continued to work, clearing brush. However, when he didn't wait for the rotors to stop completely before going to release the tension there, his hand became trapped. They went to take apart the rotor to free his hand, but they didn't have time, so Ben made the decision to cut off Terry's hand to free him. Once he was free, they brought him inside the house and stabilized him. The fire trapped them so they knew of no way out, but then a call came through with information about a road that led to safety, which they were able to take, even with low visibility. Once they were back at the command center, Ben returned Terry's wedding ring, which he'd retrieved from the scene.
Relationships[]
Romantic[]
She is married to Terry Townsend.
Notes and Trivia[]
- They'd lived in their house since 1975.
Gallery[]
