Family displaced by California fire finds turkey still in freezer

BUTTE COUNTY, California (KTRK) -- Thousands of Californians displaced by fires are spending Thanksgiving in shelters, hotels or with friends.

One family digging through their charred home discovered a turkey stored in their freezer that survived, in a sense.

"I felt lucky because it was crashing in around us. I felt blessed that we got everyone out of there. There was probably no way we would have survived if we tried to stay there and fight it," Camp Fire survivor Tim Truett said.

Tim and Christian Truett of Butte County, California were just two of the many who lost their homes in the camp fire.

"My bus driver said I didn't have to worry about anything, but I didn't believe her at all because now our home is destroyed and it was a really nice place," Christian said.

After making it to safety the two spent the next several days at the Walmart parking lot awaiting news.

"We got to go in yesterday and go through our stuff. A few houses did make it, but our whole place didn't," Tim said.

While sifting through the ashes, the family found a Thanksgiving surprise.

"The refrigerator crumpled all the way down to the ground, but in the freezer we had a frozen Thanksgiving turkey. It was in the freezer so it survived the fire, but everything else got evaporated. That thing cooked," Tim said.

Even though the turkey was blackened and charred, the family says it lightened their mood.