Man proposes to his girlfriend after finding engagement ring in burned down home

After their house burned down in the ongoing wildfires, Los Angeles couple Brian McShea and Stephanie Raynor lost everything - or so they thought.

The couple were living in their Altadena home, but were forced to evacuate on January 7 when the Eaton Canyon fire spread.

Brian was away when the fires started, leaving Stephanie to flea with their pets in the middle of the night, according to a GoFundMe organized for the couple.

However, Brian had been planning on proposing to Stephanie, and had hidden the ring inside a drawer in his desk.

Although he didn't have high hopes the ring would still be in tact, when he and Stephanie went back to where their house once stood he went to where his desk was to have a look anyway

'I was thinking, "Well, maybe the stone can survive and maybe we'll find the little stone,"' Brian told ABC7. 

'I was like, "We're going to look over here where my desk is,"' Brian recalled.

'I did not tell her why,' he continued. 'I don't know what [she] thought we were looking for because it was pretty obvious that a lot of my stuff was gone.'

Brian admitted there were a few false starts when looking for the ring - coming across several shiny things in his digging around - but miraculously, he eventually spotted the diamond. 

With the ring in his hand, Brian popped the question to an emotional Stephanie, who immediately said yes.

The pair posted celebratory photos to Instagram, showing off their unique engagement. 

In one picture, the loved-up couple had protective gear on, which they wore to search through the remains of their home, with Stephanie flashing her ring which she'd placed on her glove.

The next photo showed Brian down on one knee in front of their burned down house, asking for Stephanie's hand in marriage.

'Found the ring in the rubble and asked right away. #keeper,' he captioned the picture.  

ABC7 reported they don't have a wedding date yet but want to stay living in Altadena.

The Eaton fire coincided with another blaze that swept through the ritzy celebrity enclave of Pacific Palisades and up the coast of Malibu. 

That fire destroyed 23,713 acres of real estate and at least 11 people died.

Los Angeles officials have asked residents to remain patient while they try to work through the smoldering wreckages of fire-ravaged communities, but frustration is growing as residents demand to return home and survey the damage themselves. 

Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell said he 'understands the frustration people are feeling.'

He added: 'They've been basically kept away from their home, where everything they have is, if it's still standing, and they're not allowed to go back in and access that. I would ask for their patience because it's a situation where it's not just a decision to be made, like the flip of a switch. A lot of things are happening right now.'

Authorities have also warned scorched communities are now rife with asbestos-filled ash and dangerous debris among the carnage.

Officials warned the ash can contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.

Anish Mahajan of the LA County Public Health Department said on Tuesday: 'Ash is not just dirt.'

'It's hazardous fine dust that can irritate or harm your respiratory system and other parts of your body where it lands.'