S. CA is on fire!

[Nords]

Welcome back, Laurence, I'm glad you guys are sleeping in your own home tonight... hopefully the air will clear up over the next few days.

A grove of eucalyptus bordering their property was on fire and ready to blow (those things literally explode from all the oil in the tree) and he and a neighbor doused it out with hoses.

I've heard that eucalyptus' high oil/water content make them a potent fire break. A local kid's campsite was saved from brushfires years ago that swept up the whole hillside but couldn't gain traction in their eucalyptus grove.

It's been a dry summer. The good news is that we haven't had to cut our grass in over six months, but the not-so-good news is that every hillside around here is either brown or gray from lack of water. The trick now is getting enough rain to soak everything and start it growing again, without washing entire hillsides down into the gullies.

 

[Eagle43]

Let's hope the Santa Ana winds subside today. This is a tragic event which will affect many with higher insurance and higher taxes, not to mention the loss of a lifetime's memories. My best wishes to all of you who have to deal with this tragedy.

I was watching the activity at Qualcomm.

cbs5.com - Qualcomm Stadium Just Fine For Fire Evacuees

The similarities ended there, as an almost festive atmosphere reigned at Qualcomm Stadium.

Bands belted out rock 'n' roll, lavish buffets served up gourmet entrees and massage therapists helped relieve the stress.

Not even close to the Superdome during Katrina. Why they even have a meditation area there! Amazing.

 

[W2R]

I just found out that two of my female cousins took my 90-year-old uncle out of Rancho Bernardo and they are all staying at a motel in Kearney Mesa. One of them also has a condo in Rancho Bernardo, and doesn't even know if it has burned down or what!

They said that in driving out, there was fire on both sides of the road that met at the top so it was like driving through a tunnel of fire. But then, as kids my cousins sometimes had a tendency to exaggerate (as did I) and I have no idea whether or not they outgrew that. Either way, I am sure they were scared to death.

From what I understand, the winds should be lessening soon or have already. I hope so, at any rate.

 

[mickj]

I helped my mother-in-law pack up her house last Saturday to move to TX. She lived in Ramona, CA. We left her house around 8am Sunday, her husband was told to evacuate at noon, I think the house burned down shortly after that. Pretty crazy to say the least.

 

[laurence]

I helped my mother-in-law pack up her house last Saturday to move to TX. She lived in Ramona, CA. We left her house around 8am Sunday, her husband was told to evacuate at noon, I think the house burned down shortly after that. Pretty crazy to say the least.

Good timing at least, the memories were packed up and safe!

So far the mood in San Diego is very much one of coming together. The phone and email is rattling off like crazy. One house has so many friends packed into it I want to head down with a couple bottles of Patron and get the party going! We'll see how long it lasts as relief turns to boredom and the drudgery of the cleanup.

 

[calmloki]

Just got a call from my gal who is running her Mom around to doctor visits in Palm Springs. She says it is 100 degrees at 12:30 and the air is sparkling clear, reminding her of the air down there in the mid-60s. This thanks to the Santa Anna winds flushing the bad air out to sea. OTOH, no one can reach some other relatives who live in Santee - he has very minimal lung capacity, so hopefully they have headed for the good air.
Heard that the damage to homes is reckoned at one Billion dollars, which is just awful and a national disaster. Also just looked up the 2006 Iraq war cost, which looks to be $165,237,672,014 and counting (The Age of Consequences » What Is a Civil War and Who Decides If It Is?). Or maybe it was only two Billion every week of the year - Congressional analysis puts cost of Iraq war at $2 billion a week - The Boston Globe

Just to keep things in perspective..

 

[steve88]

Just curious, on an event like this what do you take out of the house?

 

[laurence]

Just curious, on an event like this what do you take out of the house?

Pictures and insurance paperwork. Then you go down the list of momentos. A good thing about LBYM is we don't have much in the way of material things to cry over! The walk in closet's contents could be completely replaced with $1k, all the furniture is discount store specials, no fine china, no diamonds other than the one on DW's finger, etc. We love electronics, but the computers hold the pictures so that's 2 for 1.

I hope a lot of people take this as a lesson of what really matters. If you can walk away from it with a smile, why slave away to buy it in the first place?

 

[califdreamer]

I've heard that eucalyptus' high oil/water content make them a potent fire break. A local kid's campsite was saved from brushfires years ago that swept up the whole hillside but couldn't gain traction in their eucalyptus grove.

After a quick check on wikipedia I wouldn't be planting eucalyptus as a fire break if I were rebuilding in Rancho Bernardo:

"Eucalyptus oil is highly flammable (trees have been known to explode) and brush fires can travel easily through the oil-rich air of the tree crowns."

and

"Fire is also a problem. The 1991 Oakland Hills firestorm which destroyed almost 3,000 homes and killed 25 people was partly fueled by large numbers of eucalyptus in the area close to the houses."

 

[W2R]

Just curious, on an event like this what do you take out of the house?

Probably the same as for a hurricane evacuation. Each evacuation list is very personal. You take what you need, and what you care about that cannot easily be replaced, that will fit in the car. For those who like longer lists and are wondering what they might take, here are some items from my hurricane list:

money, wallet
clothes, shoes, deodorant, toothbrush, hairbrush
camera and charger, cell phone and charger
laptop computer w/ charger, phone connection line, ethernet cable, mouse
software and CD's (including backups and digital photos), DVDs
food, water, snacks for the trip, canopener, coffee cups
files and important papers, photos, diplomas, address book
dissertation, thesis, authored materials, one or two favorite books
back taxes and papers from prior years
art and sculptures, favorite lamp
bedding and towels

When I first evacuated for Katrina, I had my laptop and two days' worth of clothes. Not good! This list was developed after that, and used after the look-n-leave five days later, and again a couple of weeks later when I evacuated for Hurricane Rita.

 

[Nords]

After a quick check on wikipedia I wouldn't be planting eucalyptus as a fire break if I were rebuilding in Rancho Bernardo:

Eh, bummer, another local legend bites the dust...

We planted our firebreak zone in yellow oleander and bougainvillea. But that's just because they're drought tolerant and not as invasive as haole koa.

 

[Achiever51]

Yesterday and today here in Michigan, we had the most spectacular sunsets...really brilliant purple, red and orange right at the horizon -- colors enhanced, I imagine, by all the particulate matter blowing eastward from the Cali fires.

 

[playaman]

My wife and I live in a section of East San Diego County known as Rancho San Diego.

Fires have been in and around us since Sunday, but today we were permitted to return to our homes. Compared to the aftermath of Katrina, which impacted one of the businesses in which I am involved, I am struck by how much more competent relief services have been in Southern California after this fire than they were in Louisiana and Mississippi after Katrina. (I concede though that a fully impacted area is not a fair comparison to one that is only impacted partially, even if a half million persons are involved).

My wife and I were in another state when the firestorm began, and I can assure you that it is disconcerting to see your neighborhood on CNN silhouetted against a wall of fire (coming down Mt. Miguel if anyone knows the area). Returning to San Diego at night, the view from the airplane of the fire lines was both shocking and amazing, awful and beautiful at the same time ... strange to have such mixed feelings.

The dying down of the winds and the rise in humidities augurs well for the fires to end soon. I certainly hope so. Smoke in the air remains an irritant, however. Perhaps that will move on soon, though, as the wind patterns return to an origination from the west.

 

[bright eyed]

oh, i will be happy when we get a whif of some fresh air, maybe after a rain?

are there any dangers this ash can pose - like on playground equipment or sand? i often wonder, even the affect of rain in this area given all the smog/pollutants on playground sand, ick.

 

[bssc]

Aunt from Lake Arrowhead safely in Joshua tree. Friend back in Poway with intact house. Other friend in Temecula safe. CNN still running celebrity reactions to the fire in the breakroom.

 

[laurence]

I'm back at work in Rancho Bernardo. I was expecting to see it look like "Saving Private Ryan" but the fire's damage is almost invisible. Every once in a while you will see some blackened trees or charred earth, but it seems 99% of structures are still here. Nightly news made it sound like total devastation.

 

[REWahoo]

Very glad to hear things in your neck of the woods are better than expected. Not surprised that the news folks overdid it. But then if it was your house that burned, you'd no doubt think the reports of total devastation were spot on.

 

[unclemick]

Yeah - talked to my sister night before last - oldest nephew is dropping chemicals(Navy heliocopters) and niece with two dogs has evacuated to friends - no word on their house yet.

Fun fun fun - after Katrina Mother Nature doesn't amaze me that much anymore.

heh heh heh - I don't think there are any 'quiet' places to live - except Texas is looking better all the time.

 

[CuppaJoe]

Wish we could send you some of our rain!! ....

And we would send our fog, but oops its clear today. But apparently we are sending firefighters. I'm relieved SO's nephew (an engine #8 firefighter) is getting older and is mostly on lecture duty to the office buildings, at least I hope that's what he's doing this week.

This disaster is so bad I've been keeping my head in the sand but wish you all well.

 

[TromboneAl]

but the fire's damage is almost invisible. Every once in a while you will see some blackened trees or charred earth, but it seems 99% of structures are still here. Nightly news made it sound like total devastation.

I know that this was a big deal, and could have been worse. But the news networks really made it seem much worse. A lot of "it could burn to the ocean" talk.

Now tourism will suffer, as people think there's nothing left to visit.

It's interesting to watch the news coverage. After the Oakland fire, we were one of those people being interviewed in front of our burned home, so I can relate in a way that non-fire-victims cannot.

A funny thing, you're standing there in a pile of ash that used to be your house, with nothing but the clothes on your back (we were away when the evacuation was ordered), and still, you can't help but think "Hey, I'm going to be on TV!"

But it was an incredible hassle and experience putting everything back together again.

 

[MasterBlaster]

but it seems 99% of structures are still here. Nightly news made it sound like total devastation.

Thank God it wasn't total devastation. If it weren't for those fire crews that fire, pushed by 50-90MPH hot winds would have swept to the sea along with thousands upon thousands of homes. The outcome wasn't so predictable as some armchair commentators suggest.

I know that I am grateful for those fire crews as I certainly felt uneasy while the fires raged nearby my house. Those crews were stretched mighty thin. The outcome of relatively few homes burning was not at all certain.

 

[twaddle]

Now tourism will suffer, as people think there's nothing left to visit.

There's still a fire burning in Santiago canyon, but Orange County is largely intact. I wouldn't recommend the place to any tourists right now, though. The entire area smells like a cheap downtown Vegas casino.

 

[laurence]

There's still a fire burning in Santiago canyon, but Orange County is largely intact. I wouldn't recommend the place to any tourists right now, though. The entire area smells like a cheap downtown Vegas casino.

Hey, I have a lot of good memories involving cheap downtown Vegas casinos..er..

What I meant to say was I'll be sending a gift basket to the local fire crew, I hear they were up 40 hours straight or more. We learned a lot from the fires of 2003, but there were still some technical and paperwork glitches ( like not letting some tankers fly the first day because they didn't have a rep from the forest service on board), but overall, kudos to the entire emergency response team, local, city and state!

 

[perinova]

I'm back at work in Rancho Bernardo. I was expecting to see it look like "Saving Private Ryan" but the fire's damage is almost invisible. Every once in a while you will see some blackened trees or charred earth, but it seems 99% of structures are still here. Nightly news made it sound like total devastation.

My in-laws went back to their home in RB yesterday night. All is OK on their end. RB had 380 homes destroyed. That is a small amounts in % of RB.
But... RB had about 25% of all the homes destroyed in S.Cal. which not insignificant. Looking at it this way.

 

[calmloki]

The gal said that smoke caused last night's full moon in 29 Palms to be beautiful, ringed in red. Relative in Santee on the edge of the Witch fire was ok - stayed inside running the AC to help w/ his badly diminished lung capacity. Today the smoke has hit the air quality in 29, they can't see the town 5 miles away and there is a burn smell. Told her to soak up some of the heat to bring back north on Monday - 50 degrees here.