LSWot How...

[trucker2000]

can you breath??
I just got back from down there and my poor blue truck with silver trailers were black!
Too much dust and smoke for me.
How are you dealing with that? You doing ok?

[lswot]

Thank God we're doing ok. There doesn't seem to be as much smoke as yesterday. The winds seem to be dying down. They are still having trouble in the mountains. You can see the smoke......but, not smell.....although I have noticed myself coughing a bit more and I don't stay outside any longer than necessary......plus it is really warm!
There have brrm a lot of homes lost......just so sad, really. You don't want to watch all the stuff on TV but.......you do.
This article was in the paper, this morning:

Hundreds lose homes
From San Diego to Malibu, hot winds whip up at least 14 major fires.
By Allison Hoffman, Associated Press
Long Beach Press Telegram
Article Launched:10/22/2007 08:43:58 PM PDT

Video: AP fire coverage
Photo: Southland fires
SAN DIEGO - Hundreds of homes were reduced to ashes Monday as wildfires blown by fierce desert winds raced across a huge swath of Southern California extending from Malibu to the Mexican border, forcing a quarter of a million people to flee.

At least one person was killed and dozens injured by more than a dozen blazes that formed a hellish, spidery pattern of luminous orange covering at least 310 square miles of the drought-stricken region.

"The sky was just red. Everywhere I looked was red, glowing. Law enforcement came barreling in with police cars with loudspeakers telling everyone to get out now," said Ronnie Leigh, 55, who fled her home at a mobile home park as smoke darkened the sky over a nearby ridge line.

Firefighters - who lost valuable time trying to persuade stubborn homeowners to leave - were almost completely overwhelmed as gale-force winds gusting to 70 mph scattered embers onto dry brush, spawning multiple fires in the same area. California officials pleaded for help from fire departments in other states.

"A lot of people are going to lose their homes today," said San Diego Fire Capt. Lisa Blake.

At least 14 fires were burning in Southern California, said Patti Roberts, spokeswoman for the Governor's Office of Emergency Services.

Already battling the 35,500-acre Buckweed Fire stretching from Agua Dulce to Saugus, fire crews scrambled Monday afternoon when a huge plume was spotted in Valencia, with flames shooting into the skies behind the thrill rides at Magic Mountain.

The new blaze, dubbed the Magic Fire, exploded within a few hours to 1,200 acres, forcing some residents on Mallory Drive and Waycott Avenue to evacuate their homes.

From San Diego to Malibu, more than 150 miles up the Pacific coast, more than 265,000 people in numerous communities were warned to leave their homes.

More than 250,000 were told to flee in San Diego County alone, where hundreds of patients were moved by school bus and ambulance from a hospital and nursing homes, many still in their hospital gowns and wheelchairs. Some carried their medical records in large zip-lock plastic bags.

In the Lake Arrowhead area, a two-front fire destroyed 128 homes in the same mountain resort community where hundreds were lost four years earlier. Air tankers that had been grounded because of high winds were back in the air fighting those fires by early evening.

One of the planes was a converted DC-10 airliner, the largest air tanker in existence. It quickly went to work laying down a huge curtain of flame retardant.

Meanwhile, in Orange County, a 1,049-inmate jail was evacuated because of heavy smoke. The prisoners were taken by bus to other lockups.

In San Diego, more than 194,000 reverse 911 calls - calls from county officials to residents - were made, alerting residents to evacuations, said county Supervisor Ron Roberts.

"We have literally the perfect firestorm going on," Roberts said. "We're a long ways from containment if there is such a thing given these winds."

Many of those ordered to evacuate ended up at Qualcomm Stadium, home to the NFL's Chargers, where thousands of people huddled in eerie silence on the bleachers, staring at muted TV news reports of the wildfires. Many evacuees gathered in the parking lot with their pets, which were banned from the stadium.

The sprawling Del Mar Fairgrounds was also turned into an evacuation center, along with high schools and senior centers.

At least one of the fires, in Orange County, was believed to have been set.

The San Diego blaze was moving so quickly that authorities had trouble getting an accurate count of how many homes had been destroyed. By Monday night, they estimated 500 homes and 100 businesses were gone.

"It was nuclear winter. It was like Armageddon. It looked like the end of the world," Mitch Mendler, a San Diego firefighter, said as he and his crew stopped at a shopping center parking lot to refill their water truck from a hydrant near a restaurant. Asked how many homes had burned, he said, "I lost count."

Tom Sollie, 49, ignored evacuation orders in Rancho Bernardo to help his neighbors spray roofs on his street with water. His home was untouched, but he watched a neighbor's house reduced to nothing but the remnants of a brick chimney. "The house went up like a Roman candle," Sollie said.

He added: "If we weren't here, the whole neighborhood would go up. There just aren't enough fire trucks around."

The blazes in San Diego County and elsewhere erupted one after another over the weekend. Things got worse Monday, when several new fires erupted and other fires merged. Parts of seven Southern California counties were ablaze.

All San Diego police officers and detectives were ordered to return to work to help move people to safety and handle other fire-related emergencies.

Firefighters complained that their efforts to stop the flames were delayed when they were confronted by people who refused to leave their homes.

"They didn't evacuate at all, or delayed until it was too late," said Bill Metcalf, a fire boss. "And those folks who are making those decisions are actually stripping fire resources."

Dozens of motorists gathered on an Interstate 15 overpass in San Diego to watch flames race up a hillside and engulf at least a half-dozen homes. Witnesses said they watched flames jump west over the 10-lane freeway.

"The flames were like 100 feet high and it moved up the hill in seconds. It was at the bottom, it was in the middle, and then it was at the top," said Steve Jarrett, who helped a friend evacuate his home in nearby Escondido.

Fire near the San Diego Wild Animal Park led authorities to move condors, a cheetah, snakes and other animals to the fire-resistant veterinary hospital on the grounds of the park. The large animals, such as elephants, rhinos and antelope, were left in irrigated enclosures.

The San Diego Zoo was not immediately threatened.

In late October and early November of 2003, 15 fires in many of the same areas killed 22 people and destroyed 3,640 homes. Ten years earlier, in October and November of 1993, 26 fires in those areas killed four people and damaged or destroyed 1,200 structures.


Still a lot of fires in the mountains......Arrowhead, Blue Jay, Creastline......a lot of vacation homes and permanent residences have been destroyed. San Diego has really been hit hard. Charger stadium is being used as a shelter. When asked how many homes had been destroyed (in San Diego) a fire chief said....."I lost count!"

[trucker2000]

I watched it last night while staying in Bakersfield. I know 3 of those fires are north of you and (if they follow the wind direction) are headed south.
I don't know how close they are tho. I did know the smoke and dust were headed that way. 30-40 mph sustained winds with 60-70 mph gusts was a tad too much wind for me. It pushed my truck all over the road. (and my truck weighed 80,000 lbs on the ground). I watched the red glow in the sky last night. It was beautiful to see, but scary when you think of the distruction that goes with it.

I'm glad you are doing well tho. Oh, got that dust mask handy? You probably need it when going outdoors for any amount of time.

[Henry J]

[Xjmt]

I didn't realize you guys were getting involved in that. Even CNBC had reports during the day on the fires. California has always had problems with fires I just wish somebody would come up with something the help prevent this from happening. The only thing I heard about is a system that'll turn water from a hose into a foam which will protect property from the flames. Sounds like a wise investment for those who may some day be in peril. Now how to 'foam' oneself?

[lswot]

The fire people sometimes just have to foam a house and then move on to the next one. Really rough working in those mountains. They have the water and retardant drops by DC10's, fixed wing and helicopters. The DC10's are awesome........oh, they all are, but, hey, I was working at McDonnell Douglas when that plane was developed. So it is a thrill to see what they can do.
Doesn't seem to be getting much better, lately.
They just showed a helicopter dipping his bucket in the community pool.......the pilot is the 'hero' of that neighborhood.....keeping fires away from their homes. Awesome.

[Xjmt]

Now we're talking REAL HEROES!

[lswot]

Now we're talking REAL HEROES!

Absolutly......

[trucker2000]

The only way to stop those fires from starting in the first place, would be to bulldoze the forest. From what I heard on the news last night, and read online today, the majority of the fires were started by fallen power lines. It would be impossible to bury all those lines. Those mountains are almost solid rock.
They have foam trucks, water and retardent from DC10s, and a single 747 dropping retardant. It was awesome to watch that thing.

This season is different from most. There are too many fires in too many different places. That's the "not normal" thing here.

[Donahoo]

Sending prayers your way.

[brian]

[Ilana]

Pepperdine evacuated. Drove down from Oakland on Monday and saw flames cresting in Castaic and on the other side of the Freeway. It was an amazing sight. Just have to stay inside and hope for the best. Less wind today and less smokey.

[Henry J]

[lswot]

Pepperdine evacuated. Drove down from Oakland on Monday and saw flames cresting in Castaic and on the other side of the Freeway. It was an amazing sight. Just have to stay inside and hope for the best. Less wind today and less smokey.

Yes, less windy......but, I do see more smoke. You are closer to the mountains, really...I hope things are ok, for you.
Outside looks strange......kind of yellow.....the sun is blocked by the smoke causing this eeriness. Well, it was....cleared up a tad. Feels like it's going to be warm, today.

[lswot]

Thanks. Some of the fires are partially contained.....but, some are getting worse. Less wind does help and once the Marine layer comes in (should be tomorrow) the humidity will rise and that along with less wind will help the firefighters. The firefighters are fantastic.....they are stretched thin and not getting much time off......they just keep doing their jobs. Super!