What's Left of Bucyrus - KXNet - Bismarck/Minot/Williston/Dickinson

The fire might be out, but the damage left in the small community of Bucyrus will take months if not years to replace.

Yesterday afternoon at about 3:00 p.m. mountain time, a fire was spotted near the community of Bucyrus.

At about 5 p.m. the town was evacuated as the fire continued to spread.

Bucyrus is about nine miles to the east of Hettinger and there's only about 25 to 30 people who call the small town home.

Today we talked with those who live in Bucyrus, both those who were fortunate not to lose anything, and those who lost everything.

But while a lot of people are trying to grasp what happened the last 24 hours, there's still one structure in the town that seems to be holding everyone together.

As you drive west on highway 12, the green ditches soon turn into memories of the horrific fire that nearly swept an entire town.

"I could see the smoke coming, so we went in and grabbed my insulin and stuff and then the Sheriff came by and said get out, so we left and everybody was leaving," Ruben Dschaak.

Luckily for Ruben Dschaak his home is still standing but for his neighbor up the street, she wasn't quite as fortunate.

"To begin with, I drove out north of town, or south of town and sat on the hill and watched the fire, thinking that I could come back and I still thought that I'd be able to come back by evening, well we finally had to give up," Evelyn Krug said.

But right across the street from Evelyn Krug's home --- stands a tall white building, not touched by the fire.

"When you look around and you see all that's gone, and you see all the destruction and to be able to step over here and step into the church and say it's here, we have a safe place and a whole community of people," Stephanie Swanson said.

Within one day, this small community of nearly 30 people, now looks like an abandoned town.

"There's only fourteen homes, and now there's only six, so what's that tell you, it's going to be tough," Dschaak said.

"I know it hasn't hit me yet, and I'm just thinking about what we need to do to cleanup the mess, and we have no idea what we will do from here on," Krug said.

What they do know is that in the heart of the town there's a place where everyone is welcome. The Lutheran Church is still standing.

The cause of the fire is still unknown at this time.

The Adams County States attorney told us last night that the fire burned an area approximately six miles wide by four miles deep.

There are cots, and food available for anyone needing a place to stay at the Hettinger Armory --- but last night not a single bed was used --- because so many people in the town of Hettinger have opened up their homes to the victims of this tragedy