Naples brush fire forces farm evacuations, residents pack cars and wait

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK)—A brush fire in the Picayune Strand State Forest is forcing people and their animals to leave their homes.

Residents of the Milano Apartments near the fire say they have not been ordered to evacuate yet. They say they're being told to wait and see.

The wind shifted, bringing more ashes and the smell of burnt smoke to the area. Some neighbors came out to take pictures of the flames, while others packed their cars just in case.

About a mile and a half away, people at nearby farms were told they had to leave. A helicopter flew low over Bella Meade Farms in Naples, where Jessica, a trainer, raced against time to get her horses out.

She had seven horses and, at first, no clear way to move them all. After making calls, help started showing up with trailers and extra hands, allowing her to get every horse out safely and sent to the Naples Therapeutic Riding Center.

"At that moment, everyone was helping everyone. I saw one girl in a nice dress running into the barn to go get horses. Two other people were coming out, running down the road, a horse in each hand. They probably didn't know where they were going either," Jessica said.

With her horses now safe, her focus shifted to what comes next. She doesn't know if the barn is still standing but heard it was okay.

People watching this all unfold say they've never seen anything like it. Some even called it a scene straight out of a movie.

The Naples Therapeutic Riding Center says they still have room to take in six more horses.