Dana Wyland, of Lake Arrowhead, California, who has been dubbed the “unluckiest woman,” says she's experienced her fair share of natural disasters and is currently evacuating from devastating wildfires.
“I'm nervous right now. I know there are a lot of people in the little town next door, Running Springs, who are just losing their homes right now. It's really hard. They're my friends, people that aren't my friends, people that I don't even know,” Wyland told Fox News Digital cameras.
In San Bernardino County, where Lake Arrowhead is located, about 2,000 firefighters and personnel are battling a fire that has burned more than 26,400 acres, Fox Weather reported.
The mother of four said she drove to her aunt's house in Las Vegas after a third emergency alert was issued calling for her to evacuate.
“I'm very sentimental, so my car is full of photos. Photos are important to me. My car [is] Lots of photos [from] “The whole house is full. Photo albums, everything.”
Her husband, Lance, is still in Lake Arrowhead, awaiting the final warning to evacuate, but for now, her home and family are safe.
Wyland said as he was leaving, local residents appeared to be evacuating, some with trailers attached to their vehicles and ready to leave.
“Apparently they are following the warnings, everything in town is closed. There are no banks. No stores open except for one grocery store… Sheriffs, highway patrol, fire engines everywhere.”
Wyland was once called “the unluckiest woman in the world” by a news reporter for her repeated exposure to natural disasters, which she has either witnessed or escaped at least five in her life.
“it is [been] It's been 16 or 17 years since the last fire, so I wouldn't say it was the 'most unlucky,' but we'll be talking about it the next time we move, so who knows what will happen.”
In 2007, Hurricane Katrina hit, devastating her and her family's life in New Orleans.
“There was about 10 feet of flooding. [in my house]… So everything downstairs was totally destroyed and everything upstairs smelled like mold.”
According to the National Weather Service, Hurricane Katrina killed 1,833 people and caused approximately $108 billion in damages along the Gulf Coast and in New Orleans, leaving millions homeless.
Wyland said she and her family were staying in a hotel when the National Guard ordered a mandatory evacuation of the area.
She said they jumped into their flooded car and drove out of the hotel parking lot.
“We had people crawling around on our cars. We had people wanting our cars. [in hopes to get out]” ” she said.
Wyland and his family made the 20-hour drive to Houston, Texas, to stay with a friend for the next three months.
After some time in Texas, Hurricane Rita struck, forcing Wyland to evacuate his family again.
Two years ago, Wyland and his family experienced another extreme weather event: a severe snowstorm.
“We were stuck in our house for 11 days with no electricity,” she said, calling it “snowmageddon.”
Wyland said he advises others to “be organized” so they can be better prepared in the event of a natural disaster.
“I'm usually messy,” she says. “I keep everything in one place so I can get it out. We did that. I'm more organized.” 1726087810.”
Wyland said her son suggested she move to be closer to him and his family in Pittsburgh, where there are no natural disasters.
“I told you it was definitely going to cause something to flood,” she joked.
