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Fire trucks move along Highway 178 near Lake Isabella, Calif., Friday, June 24, 2016, as a wildfire continues to burn in the area. The wildfire that roared across dry brush and trees in the mountains of central California gave residents little time to flee as flames burned homes to the ground, propane tanks exploded and smoke obscured the path to safety. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
A firefighter battles a wildfire burning along Highway 178, Friday, June 24, 2016 in Lake Isabella, Calif. The wildfire that roared across dry brush and trees in the mountains of central California gave residents little time to flee as flames burned homes to the ground, propane tanks exploded and smoke obscured the path to safety. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Firefighters put out a spot fire as they continue to battle a wildfire burning along Highway 178 near Lake Isabella, Calif., Friday, June 24, 2016. The wildfire that roared across dry brush and trees in the mountains of central California gave residents little time to flee as flames burned homes to the ground, propane tanks exploded and smoke obscured the path to safety. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
A home burned down by a wildfire sits on the hilltop near Lake Isabella, Calif., Friday, June 24, 2016. The wildfire that roared across dry brush and trees in the mountains of central California gave residents little time to flee as flames burned homes to the ground, propane tanks exploded and smoke obscured the path to safety. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
A Kern County firefighter sets a backfire by a wildfire burning near Lake Isabella, Calif. on Friday, June 24, 2016. Dozens of homes burned to the ground as a wildfire raged over ridges and tore through rural communities in central California, authorities said. Ryan Babroff via AP
Kern County firefighters move on a fast burning wildfire burning near Yankee Canyon and State Route 178 near Lake Isabella, Calif. on Friday, June 24, 2016. Dozens of homes burned to the ground as a wildfire raged over ridges and tore through rural communities in central California, authorities said. Ryan Babroff via AP
The remains of mobile homes devastated by a wildfire are seen in the foreground as smoke rises over a mountain, Saturday, June 25, 2016, in South Lake, Calif. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
A pickup truck passes by the remains of mobile homes devastated by a wildfire, Saturday, June 25, 2016, in South Lake, Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency, freeing up money and resources to fight the fire and to clean up in the aftermath. The Federal Emergency Management Agency also authorized the use of funds for firefighting efforts. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Evacuee Kimberly Tieche holds her 10-month old puppy while listening to the briefing on a wildfire at an evacuation center, Saturday, June 25, 2016, near Kernville, Calif. Tieche whose home was devastated by the wildfire said she only had five minutes to get out. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Evacuee Rene Czajka, facing camera, gets emotional as she comforts Cathy Berlin who lost her home in a wildfire as they gather for a briefing at an evacuation center, Saturday, June 25, 2016, in Kernville, Calif. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Lucas Martin stares at a cup found in the ashes of his fire ravaged home in South Lake, Calif., Sunday, June 26, 2016. Martin's home was among the more than 200 homes and buildings destroyed by the fire that swept through the area near Lake Isabella, Calif. At right is Emily Fryer who help Martin sift through the rubble. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
Lucas Martin, right, hugs his stepson, Nathan Looper, after finding an heirloom belt buckle he thought was destroyed at his home in South Lake, Calif. The buckle belonged to Martin's best friend who had left it at the home when he went to work on the day the home was burned down. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
Sallie Keeling looks through a jewelry box she found after she and her husband, Steve, right, searched through the burned out rubble of their home, Monday, June 27, 2016, in South Lake, Calif. The home was destroyed by the fire that started Thursday, near Lake Isabella, Calif. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
Inca, a cadaver dog, and her handler Mary Cablk search the burned ruins of a home Monday, June 27, 2016, in Squirrel Valley, Calif. The blaze had killed an elderly couple who were found Friday after apparently being overcome by smoke. The fire has burned more than 70 square miles and is 40 percent contained. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
Robert Delgado, a lineman for Southern California Edison, works on power line at fire ravaged South Lake, Calif., Monday, June 27, 2016. Power crews work restore power to the area that was swept by fire near Lake Isabella, Calif. The fire that started Thursday, has taken the lives of an elderly couple, apparently overcome by smoke, burned more than 70 square miles, and is 40 percent contained. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
The burned out remains of a pickup are seen as power crews work to restore power in fire ravaged South Lake, Calif, Monday, June 27, 2016. The fire that started Thursday, near Lake Isabella, Calif has taken the lives of an elderly couple, apparently overcome by smoke, burned more than 70 square miles, and is 40 percent contained. AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
Sallie Keeling had seen enough photos of destruction over four days to know what to expect when she returned Monday to the fire-ravaged neighborhood where she and her husband had lived for 13 years.
"There's nothing," she said, covered in soot after digging through the rubble. "Just ashes."
Keeling, 71, surveyed the devastated South Lake near Lake Isabella as evacuation orders were lifted in some nearby communities that suffered less damage from the wildfire that killed two people and destroyed 200 homes in the southern Sierra Nevada.
The fire grew to more than 70 square miles, but was it 40 percent contained as it burned in steep terrain south of Lake Isabella. Houses could be vulnerable if winds blow the fire back toward some of the communities in the popular recreation area, Fire Chief Brian Marshall said.
"There's still more threats out there," Marshall said. "This is going to go down as the most destructive wildfire in Kern County history."
Cadaver dogs searched through the rubble of devastated neighborhoods for more possible casualties, though remains found over the weekend were identified as an animal, Kern County sheriff's spokesman Ray Pruitt said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. A man with two guns was arrested Sunday in a mandatory evacuation area, though further details weren't available on possible charges he could face, Pruitt said.
The fire began Thursday and quickly exploded in dry brush and bore down on small communities of houses and mobile homes that surround Lake Isabella, a dammed section of the scenic Kern River popular for fishing, whitewater rafting and other outdoor activities.
Terrifying flames arrived with little warning and residents, many elderly, had to flee amid heavy smoke.
"People were escaping barely within an inch of their lives," Marshall said.
The bodies of an elderly couple, apparently overcome by smoke, were found Friday. Their names have not been released.
In addition to the destroyed homes, another 75 were damaged.
The fire was the most damaging blaze in California, but it is just one of many that have burned large swaths of the arid West during hot weather.
Keeling poked through debris and twisted metal in a vain search for a safe-like metal box. She unearthed a charred jewelry box, but most everything else was a total loss, including a Chevy pickup truck and small car that sat on their axles nearby.
Her husband, Steve Keeling, said he inherited the house and the ashes of his parents' remains had been inside. They always wanted to spend eternity in that place and now it seemed they would.
AP/ Brian Melley
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