At least three homes were destroyed as wind-whipped flames ripped through 500 acres of dry ranchland in rural Lincoln on Monday.

Approximately 10 other structures and multiple vehicles and pieces of farm equipment also were lost in the fast-moving blaze, which was first reported off Gladding Road at approximately 12:40 p.m. Monday.

Monday afternoon, Ruben Ayala squinted through the smoke near his home off Wise Road, trying to catch a glimpse of his house as airplanes and helicopters continually dropped fire retardant. Fire engines lined the roads, their crews battling the main fire and the hot spots that started as the wind threw hot ashes into dry grass.

At approximately 1 p.m. Monday, Ayala said, he came home to find firefighters battling a grass fire next to his house. They told him to evacuate, and he only had time to grab his dogs before retreating to a neighbor’s house.

“They told me they’d be there to protect it,” he said.

Nearby residents all stood outside their homes, watching the blaze and hoping it didn’t come any closer.

“Our cars are packed up,” said Carolyn De Witt, one of Ayala’s neighbors. “This is the closest something has ever come to our house.”

The De Witts smelled the smoke before they ever saw any flames, and from 1:30 p.m. onward, they stood out front and watched the fire steadily approach, hoping the winds would die down and allow fire crews to get it under control.

At one point, their power went out, and hot ashes were hitting their cars. De Witt said her husband built their house, and to think of it going up in smoke was heartbreaking.

“That’s the most sickening thing to think about,” she said.

“We keep the fields down,” she added. “All we can do is mow the grass and keep it as short as possible.”

Late Monday, an evacuation center was opened at Carlin C. Coppin Elementary School; volunteers from the Red Cross and Lincoln CERT were on hand to assist residents, offering water and a place to regroup.

As dusk fell, Jennifer Caszatt held her 8-week-old baby, Mary Jane, as she and other members of the Harmon family waited for word on when they could return to their home near Mt. Pleasant.

“We were afraid it was going to blow back up at us and we didn’t want to take any chances,” Caszatt said. “We just threw (the baby’s) clothes and bassinet in the car and grabbed the dog and took off.”

Most road closures were lifted and evacuees were allowed to return to their homes by approximately 8:30 p.m. Monday.

By Tuesday afternoon, flames were 80 percent contained and expected to be fully extinguished by midnight, though crews would continue checking for hot spots for several days, said Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant.

Berlant said Monday’s low humidity and dusty winds fed the destruction, spreading the fire nearly to Highway 193. At its peak, more than 400 personnel were on scene – including teams from Sac Metro, South Placer, Roseville, Rocklin, Foresthill, Newcastle and Placerville – as well as 52 engines, four air tankers, four helicopters, four dozers, four water tenders and eight hand crews.

“Unfortunately we lost three homes, but there were 400 homes that were threatened,” Berlant said. “There was a lot more potential for destruction. Nobody was hurt.”

Long after the last evacuees trickled back into their homes Monday night, Helen and Harley Hutchinson returned to the smoldering remains of their century-old farmhouse on Tuesday to pick through rubble and keep an eye out for their missing pets.

Though the couple believes a pair of kittens inside the home perished, their outdoor cats and two dogs fled.

“The only important thing now is the animals,” Harley Hutchinson said. “There’s nothing left to save.”

Just a chimney, concrete steps and a windmill were left standing at the McCourtney Road address. Along with the home, the couple lost two barns, several outbuildings and several trucks and ranch equipment.

“It’s just starting to sink in now,” Helen Hutchinson said. “Everything is gone. The house across the street is fine. It’s amazing how the wind blows.”

Son Mike Hutchinson, who is housing his parents, stared sadly at the place his childhood home once stood.

“It was an old ranch house,” he said. “I grew up here. My great-grandmother lived here.”

Another neighbor, Julie Hueftle, said she knows the pain the Hutchinsons are going through. She lost her own home 15 years ago.

In the moment, evacuees often don’t think to grab a checkbook, identification or birth certificate, let alone family heirlooms, she said. Harley Hutchinson, for instance, lost all of his diabetic medication.

“There’s so much you can do ahead of time,” Hueftle said. “These guys lost everything.”

Hueftle said she is raising funds to help Helen and Harley Hutchinson, who were unable to insure their home because of its age. Donations can be made at U.S. Bank to an account in the name of Harley Hutchinson.

Correspondent Brandon Darnell contributed to this story.