Firefighters remain on the lines of the Taylor Bridge fire on this Monday.  Officials say the fire is now 47 percent contained.  Now, it's time for people like Joanie Lee to begin picking up the pieces.  Lee had just a few hours to get out of her home before it went up in flames.

 

Lee had to leave her horses at a makeshift animal rescue on Ellensburg fairgrounds. Raquel Ferrell-Cowley has been volunteering around the clock since Monday.  Lee says nearly 125 other people have showed up to help as the animals keep pouring in.  Ferrell-Cowley says just like humans, the animals are in a state of shock.

They're trying to provide enough normalcy as possible for them with shade, food and shelter.  Some are recovering from burns.  Organizers say all the animals and the donations have to be off the fairgrounds by the time the fair starts this week so a large portion of that operation will be moved to the warehouse on the corner of North Wenas Street and Third Avenue in Ellensburg.

Kittitas County Emergency Management will begin to assess the destruction of 48 homes and 15 other structures.  If you feel your home or property needs to be assessed you're asked to contact the sheriff's office or visit the assessor's link on the Kittitas County website.

The Yakima and Kittitas valleys are reaching out to help neighbors impacted by the Taylor Bridge fire.  Fundraising efforts last week here at town square media studios resulted in you donating nearly 8 thousand dollars.  Many of you stopped by our studios to drop off checks and cash all going to the red cross to help those hit hard by the Taylor Bridge Fire.

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