VIDEO: After three long weeks, residents are back on Mount Lemmon tonight after the Bighorn Fire forced the area to be evacuated.
Pima County Sheriff's deputies escorted groups of full-time residents to Summerhaven then back down again.
Residents can stay on the mountain if they want to, but they must have escorts to go up and down the mountain.
It’s a big relief for those returning Tuesday, July 7, who are thankful they have a home to return to.
“I actually got out of my car and overlooked the town down here and I put my arms up and yelled woohoo! It just felt so good to be home,” said Leanne Mack, Manager of the Mt. Lemmon General Store. She spent three weeks in a hotel during the evacuation.
No structures were lost and her property was left untouched by the Bighorn Fire.
“My house smells, you know I can smell the smoke in the house,” Mack said.