Thoughts and prayers out to all affected in Socal.
California burning
- Thread starter draftingmonkey
- Start date
Mystic
We're all born mad
I think we'll be okay here, but in the last hour the pieces of ash have started falling from the sky.
[an inappropriate choice of smilie at his time?]
sleddogman
Super Member
email from a friend in Temecula, CA sent yesterday at 4:15pm.
250,000 people are being evacuated from San Diego area (about 30 - 40 miles away) right now. The 15 North bound is jammed and all these people are heading my way and north. I'm packing my bags and important docs, and put a "Thule space booster" on my Acura RDX. I'm here by myself in that the wife went to NYC to be with her Dad who just got out of the hospital.
Right now the wind has been blowing at full blast (aprox 40 - 60 MPH and up wind) for the past 2 days. There was a fire about 10 miles due east yesterday but it was quickly extinguished. Today there's an easy dozen fires going on and the resources are also coming from neighboring states.
So if it gets crazy then it's me and the dogs out the door in a flash and due East - away from the flames.
250,000 people are being evacuated from San Diego area (about 30 - 40 miles away) right now. The 15 North bound is jammed and all these people are heading my way and north. I'm packing my bags and important docs, and put a "Thule space booster" on my Acura RDX. I'm here by myself in that the wife went to NYC to be with her Dad who just got out of the hospital.
Right now the wind has been blowing at full blast (aprox 40 - 60 MPH and up wind) for the past 2 days. There was a fire about 10 miles due east yesterday but it was quickly extinguished. Today there's an easy dozen fires going on and the resources are also coming from neighboring states.
So if it gets crazy then it's me and the dogs out the door in a flash and due East - away from the flames.
wajobu
Boing Boom Tschak
I just spoke to my two cousins (brothers) in San Diego. One (in San Diego proper) has been forced to evacuate on short notice and loaded up their car very early this morning with everything that they could...then they zipped to their two daughter's and son's condos to do the same (load car and go!). When I spoke to him they had just finished loading the last car and were getting ready to bolt. They are not sure that they will have homes to go back to (my poor elder cousin...I could hear it in his voice).
My other younger cousin (in Encinatas) and his family are choking on smoke and ash...they are watching the reports minute to minute...they might need to evacuate next.
My goodness...my elder cousin doesn't know where they will go yet (and won't go to Encinatas since the winds, smoke and ash are so variable)...right now it's a caravan into the unknown.
My other younger cousin (in Encinatas) and his family are choking on smoke and ash...they are watching the reports minute to minute...they might need to evacuate next.
My goodness...my elder cousin doesn't know where they will go yet (and won't go to Encinatas since the winds, smoke and ash are so variable)...right now it's a caravan into the unknown.
draftingmonkey
AK Monkey
here's a link to Nasa of the fires in case anyone is interested
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/socal_wildfires_oct07.html
should be good for the latest images
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/socal_wildfires_oct07.html
should be good for the latest images
As much as it hurts to say it, my hat's off to the Govenator. Arnold has been all over the fire areas. I've heard him speak several times in various press conferences and he is clearly informed and involved. He is able to speak off the cuff with details of the actions being taken. He was asked about air support and without hesitation rattled off the number of aircraft available, where they were stations and which ones were flying. He's smarter than he looks.
- Pete
- Pete
Duffinator
Spin The Black Circle
No rain in the forecast.
My sister lives in the Scripts Ranch area of SD and was evacuated from her home yesterday but stayed behind. She said there were reports of two hours to drive the two miles to the freeway. She's not too close to the flames but that could change.
AK member Colombo is in Santa Clarita and I understand there are fires in that area now. I'll send him an email just to make sure he's OK.
sleddogman
Super Member
It took three attempts due to call volume, but I finally spoke with other friends I have out in the area last night and they said over 500,000 people have currently evacuated. Interstate 15 was closed from San Diego all the way up to the truck scales because the fire keeps hopping back and forth over the highway in the valley and making that route of evacuation extremely hazardous.
They also concur with what LBPete mentioned. Although they're not overly fond of him, they said that Arnie didn't wait for the light bulb to go on over G.W. or FEMA (like New Orleans) and immediately got on the phone to folks he knew in other states and the military and requested fire-fighting personnel, equipment, and water-tanker planes. Folks out there are really impressed with the quick action he's taken in addressing the disaster and his on-site evaluation of the situations as they continue to unfold.
The other interesting thing they mentioned was that the fires have consumed all the local over-the-air radio and TV broadcast antennas, knocking out the dissemination of news. They also mentioned that they've suddenly become one of the neighborhood's "hot spots" for news because Time Warner cable service (video and internet) has been knocked out in their neighborhood as well as many areas, but good ol' Verzion DSL is still functioning for them. It seems KUSI and other stations have taken to streaming their broadcasts on the internet (because their transmitters and antennas are in ashes) so folks have some idea what's going on. Here's a brief email they sent this morning.
So far we (and the six cats) are fine. The fires are on the other side of the hills and the wind is currently calm, with the offshore winds slowly pushing the Rice Canyon (Fallbrook) and Pendleton fires towards Temecula. For the first time since all this started the smoke is starting to drift in...
Thought I'd pass along the links we've been using to keep track of things.
San Diego News Stations (streaming video)
http://www.kusi.com
http://www.10news.com
San Diego County Emergency Updates (constant updates)
http://www.sdcountyemergency.com
http://www.cbs8.com
San Diego County Fires
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&....990236,-116.732483&spn=1.442114,1.697388&z=9
LA Fires
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...active Google map of fires</a></p><p><a href=
Press-Enterprise Temecula Fire Blog
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/10/23/news/californian/10_99_3710_23_07.txt
They also concur with what LBPete mentioned. Although they're not overly fond of him, they said that Arnie didn't wait for the light bulb to go on over G.W. or FEMA (like New Orleans) and immediately got on the phone to folks he knew in other states and the military and requested fire-fighting personnel, equipment, and water-tanker planes. Folks out there are really impressed with the quick action he's taken in addressing the disaster and his on-site evaluation of the situations as they continue to unfold.
The other interesting thing they mentioned was that the fires have consumed all the local over-the-air radio and TV broadcast antennas, knocking out the dissemination of news. They also mentioned that they've suddenly become one of the neighborhood's "hot spots" for news because Time Warner cable service (video and internet) has been knocked out in their neighborhood as well as many areas, but good ol' Verzion DSL is still functioning for them. It seems KUSI and other stations have taken to streaming their broadcasts on the internet (because their transmitters and antennas are in ashes) so folks have some idea what's going on. Here's a brief email they sent this morning.
So far we (and the six cats) are fine. The fires are on the other side of the hills and the wind is currently calm, with the offshore winds slowly pushing the Rice Canyon (Fallbrook) and Pendleton fires towards Temecula. For the first time since all this started the smoke is starting to drift in...
Thought I'd pass along the links we've been using to keep track of things.
San Diego News Stations (streaming video)
http://www.kusi.com
http://www.10news.com
San Diego County Emergency Updates (constant updates)
http://www.sdcountyemergency.com
http://www.cbs8.com
San Diego County Fires
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&....990236,-116.732483&spn=1.442114,1.697388&z=9
LA Fires
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...active Google map of fires</a></p><p><a href=
Press-Enterprise Temecula Fire Blog
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/10/23/news/californian/10_99_3710_23_07.txt
bigstereo
Super Member
Wow, I was wondering if Camp Pendleton was on fire too. We used to have to go help put em out all the time on the weapons ranges. We started a few of our own with the mortars. Still hoping for the best for all you people out there and that everyone makes it through safely and without loss or damage. And again as LBPete asked earlier. Has anyone heard from QuadBob?
sleddogman
Super Member
Just in from a friend. The photo is kind of ominous...
Day 4 - still crazy and blowing wind out of the east. We're up on a hillside, since its a new development there's not much to burn. We have a stucco building and a tile roof so somewhat fire retardant. The "witch fire" is about 30 miles south from here towards Bernado Ranch in North San Diego County. There's a fire just over the hill east of us in Fallbrook referred to as the "Rice Canyon Fire".
But the one that keeps me nervous is behind the mountains that we back up to and on an Puchanga Indian Reservation. I believe it started in Puumacha Indian Res. and is traveling east and may join up with the Rice Cyn fire. I just got a call from my brother who said that CNN is now calling this fire the "Rosa fire." If so, then we're in a fire vise and must head east. I've attached a picture from our front yard that I took yesterday. My son-in-law's parents live in Indio (about 1.5 hour drive) so our plan is go there. We also have family in Chandler, AZ and SLC, UT so east it is if necessary. I understand that comm. lines cell & land are messed up so we can only hope for the best.
Day 4 - still crazy and blowing wind out of the east. We're up on a hillside, since its a new development there's not much to burn. We have a stucco building and a tile roof so somewhat fire retardant. The "witch fire" is about 30 miles south from here towards Bernado Ranch in North San Diego County. There's a fire just over the hill east of us in Fallbrook referred to as the "Rice Canyon Fire".
But the one that keeps me nervous is behind the mountains that we back up to and on an Puchanga Indian Reservation. I believe it started in Puumacha Indian Res. and is traveling east and may join up with the Rice Cyn fire. I just got a call from my brother who said that CNN is now calling this fire the "Rosa fire." If so, then we're in a fire vise and must head east. I've attached a picture from our front yard that I took yesterday. My son-in-law's parents live in Indio (about 1.5 hour drive) so our plan is go there. We also have family in Chandler, AZ and SLC, UT so east it is if necessary. I understand that comm. lines cell & land are messed up so we can only hope for the best.
Attachments
QuadBob lives by the outskirts of Spring Valley (here is a map of the Harris fire as of this morning that would be the one to have impacted on him) backing onto a wilderness area that could potentially be a fire risk. Although he might have been evacuated, I believe that Spring Valley per se has been spared. The wind has thankfully turned from easterly to the more customary westerly ocean breezes, so that the fires kinda are being pushed back into their own tracks.
Of course, this is speculation only based on the info available at this point, and in order to know for sure we would need to get in touch with him
VQLT
Active Member
I live in N.E Irvine, site of the santiago canyon fire. Sunday, the fire was w/in two miles of our area (northwood) winds have died down and fire has shifted to the north east away from our area. everything is covered in ash and it is still falling from the sky. kids have had to stay inside for the last 3 days due to air quality. everyone is a little stir crazy
