SANTA BARBARA,CA - Aside from a guitar that had belonged to her late father, the yellow diamond Tiffany & Co. engagement ring was one of Laura Rao’s most prized possessions. But recently, when Rao, 39, and her husband Ishu, 48, were forced to evacuate their home in Goleta, California, amid a raging wildfire, the ring was left behind in a dish next to the bathroom sink. “It’s not like me to not grab the ring right away because I treasure it,”
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Laura told The Washington Post. “But we could see flames coming towards us. It’s almost like you go into shock. All I did was just grab the dogs and the kids and we left.”
The couple had only been married about eight months. Fleeing from a wildfire, now known as the Holiday Fire, was one of the last things the Raos thought they would be doing, Ishu told The Washington Post. The couple had gotten ready for bed, and as she did every night, Laura took off her engagement and wedding rings, placing them in the dish by the sink. They were watching TV when they suddenly smelled the smoke. “I got up and looked and there was an inferno like a half mile away,” Ishu said. “The only thing between the fire and us is a lot of dry brush . . . so we were like we gotta get out of here.” Within minutes after calling 911, the couple got Ishu’s two daughters as well as three dogs and a cat out of the house and safely into cars. Laura was in her car when she realized she didn’t have her engagement ring. “I was going to run back, but there was smoke, there were flames and I thought I could die if I could go back, so I drove away so upset,” Laura said. “I was devastated about the ring.”
About 20 minutes later, the wildfire reached their home, Laura said.
In a post on Facebook, Ishu shared a photo of the house burning down. The two-story home was engulfed in flames, the blaze coloring the night sky in an intense orange glow. All that remained of the Rao’s home was ash and unidentifiable rubble, Ishu said, adding that he and his wife had been allowed to go to the site to search for any possessions. “You have this fantasy that you’re going to find something and there’s nothing left,” he said. “We had a massive two-story house and it all sunk down and it was ash. It was like the end of a long barbecue.” In the ashes, the Raos searched for Laura’s engagement ring.
After piecing together a layout of the house from the rubble, Ishu said he was able to figure out the general location of the sink and used remains of plumbing as guidance. They found the ring, still in its dish.
Even though the ring was charred and missing the diamond, Ishu decided to recreate one of the couple’s happiest moments. Surrounded by the fire’s devastation, he knelt down on one knee and proposed to Laura again,and she said yes-again.
The couple had only been married about eight months. Fleeing from a wildfire, now known as the Holiday Fire, was one of the last things the Raos thought they would be doing, Ishu told The Washington Post. The couple had gotten ready for bed, and as she did every night, Laura took off her engagement and wedding rings, placing them in the dish by the sink. They were watching TV when they suddenly smelled the smoke. “I got up and looked and there was an inferno like a half mile away,” Ishu said. “The only thing between the fire and us is a lot of dry brush . . . so we were like we gotta get out of here.” Within minutes after calling 911, the couple got Ishu’s two daughters as well as three dogs and a cat out of the house and safely into cars. Laura was in her car when she realized she didn’t have her engagement ring. “I was going to run back, but there was smoke, there were flames and I thought I could die if I could go back, so I drove away so upset,” Laura said. “I was devastated about the ring.”
About 20 minutes later, the wildfire reached their home, Laura said.
In a post on Facebook, Ishu shared a photo of the house burning down. The two-story home was engulfed in flames, the blaze coloring the night sky in an intense orange glow. All that remained of the Rao’s home was ash and unidentifiable rubble, Ishu said, adding that he and his wife had been allowed to go to the site to search for any possessions. “You have this fantasy that you’re going to find something and there’s nothing left,” he said. “We had a massive two-story house and it all sunk down and it was ash. It was like the end of a long barbecue.” In the ashes, the Raos searched for Laura’s engagement ring.
After piecing together a layout of the house from the rubble, Ishu said he was able to figure out the general location of the sink and used remains of plumbing as guidance. They found the ring, still in its dish.
Even though the ring was charred and missing the diamond, Ishu decided to recreate one of the couple’s happiest moments. Surrounded by the fire’s devastation, he knelt down on one knee and proposed to Laura again,and she said yes-again.
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