CA Wildfires

mike04456 · Oct 28, 2003

In case anyone was wondering, I''m still here. My wife and I have been lucky in that our area has been largely spared, but I live next to an undeveloped canyon that would go up like a box of matches if it got lit somehow. So I''m not feeling complacent. My company has not been lucky--we were told to stay home today and now again tomorrow because the place I work is in the thick of it right now and they have been asked by the local authorities to keep people off the roads if possible. It''s unlikely that the building would catch fire--it''s not in a vulnerable area--but I strongly suspect that some of my co-workers may have been among those whose homes burned...

Even without that to worry about, the last three days have been like scene out of hell. The sky has been blotted out by smoke since it started, with ash and cinders raining down everywhere. The sun appears now and then, but it''s blood-red through the smoke. The smell is impossible to escape, even indoors. /idealbb/images/smilies/14.gif

Arlington · Oct 28, 2003

I've been stunned at some of the footage I've seen. Good luck and stay safe.

Hest88 · Oct 28, 2003

Lawgem, I didn't realize you were so close to the fires. Be careful!

canadiangrrl · Oct 28, 2003

Stay safe Lawgem. I'm praying that this passes sooner rather than later.

fire&ice · Oct 28, 2003

It's surreal to watch. I can not imagine living it. Thoughts out your way!

Kamuelamom · Oct 28, 2003

LawBen, my prayers go out for your safety and those others endangered in your area.

AGBF · Oct 28, 2003

We don't watch television, although we own two TV sets from "before". I didn't realize, somehow, that the fires would be shown on TV. I have been reading about them in the newspapers. I found it terrifying that most of the people who have been killed were in cars trying to outrun the fires! It sounds insane to stay anywhere near them.

Like everyone else, I wish you, your family, and your neighbors well, LawGem.

Deborah

Mikesgirl · Oct 28, 2003

G-d granting it will all be over soon in the best possible way. Wear a mask - protect your lungs!

Mara · Oct 28, 2003

Horrible.

Stay safe everyone in that area....

It's been very warm here in N. CA...days and evenings are unseasonably warm for late October, about 90 during the day. Wonder if the winds blowing over from South have something to do with that.

ThatKoreanGuy · Oct 28, 2003

we should all do a rain dance =D

"imagine if it rained within' a week of this thread, how creepy that would be..."

derekinla · Oct 29, 2003

The arsonist(s) who started the fires should be tried for murder and be given the harshest sentence possible.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-hunters29oct29,1,7068779.story

Mara · Oct 29, 2003

How horrible for the guy who was lost who started one of the fires with his flare. He was delirious and dehydrated when they found him, he obviously was not in his right mind...just didn't want to die out there. He had no idea how close they were to finding him. Now that he is pinpointed as starting one of the fires, it will be tough to be him

(kind of like that guy who tried to catch the ball at the world series)....

Kay · Oct 29, 2003

I'm in San Diego, and the last few days have been pretty surreal. Saturday night everything was fine, then Sunday morning we woke up and looked outside and the sky was orange and gray. We watched the news all day, and in early afternoon they started reporting fires and evacuations in two neighborhoods that are about 6-8 miles north of our home. We packed ours cars with clothing, my jewelry (of course), some irreplaceable items from our grandparents, water, etc., just in case the call came to evacuate. It was so hard to walk through the house and try to pick what items to take. We were very lucky that the fire never came close enough to force us to leave, but I cannot imagine the anguish of those who have lost everything they owned -- there are so many things that simply cannot be replaced by insurance. A few of the people in my office lost their homes and are looking for places to live until they can re-build. Of course, the loss of lives is even more tragic -- we still do not have many details on the deaths that have been reported, but a few of them were people who waited too long to evacuate.

daboyzmomi · Oct 29, 2003

Glad to hear everyone else is well. We were evacuated on Saturday evening. The fire was so close we could feel the heat burning our cheeks. It was the most surreal thing I have ever experienced in my life. We are lucky no damage to our home which is a miracle since we are surrounded by huge eucalyptus trees. I just hope they catch the person that did each and every one of these. The devestation is unreal.

Attached is a picture from the top of our street.

LesleyH · Oct 29, 2003

Hi Lawgem:

Thank you for letting us know that you are OK. Our 2 sons are in school in LA and they have been telling us that the smell of smoke has been reaching them too and that the sky is smoggy. I am really concerned about all of you out there breathing in all that bad air.

Take Care,

LesleyH
www.whiteflash.com

Giangi · Oct 29, 2003

Dear Ben and Lesley;

PLEASE stay safe! I really hope things get better asap. We're having hard rain here in Italy... I hope you'll have it too verrry soon. In the mean time, stay safe, and if you have spare time, stay with us on pricescope!

Mikesgirl · Oct 29, 2003

That picture is frightening - even more so when it was taken by someone I "know". I'm glad your house was spared. Take care.

canadiangrrl · Oct 29, 2003

That picture left me wondering exactly which circle of hell it was taken on. I feel so badly for all of the people and animals who've been injured or killed.

XvvOrlyBearvvX · Oct 29, 2003

Awww I just heard a firfighter died....That is so sad I feel terrible. I hope this fire diminishes soon...Wow diminish a big word for me...ha ha ha just kidding

mike04456 · Oct 30, 2003

The photos here pretty much sum up what's going on now:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-103003fireflash-g,1,2684644.flash?coll=la-home-headlineshttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-wildfire-sg,1,3759761.storygallery?coll=la-home-headlines

Several members of my family have vacation homes up in the mountains. There's a good chance those homes won't survive this.

Kay · Oct 30, 2003

There are 16 confirmed deaths in San Diego now:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/fires/toll.html

The good news is that raindrops started hitting my office window a few minutes ago. I hope we get a real downpour that will put out the remaining fires.

fire&ice · Oct 30, 2003

I hope the rain helps. I understand about the guy w/ the flair -poor judgement. But, I can not fathom who would purposely set these fires. Those people should be burned at the stake.

Stupid question - Do diamonds burn?

XvvOrlyBearvvX · Oct 30, 2003

Yeah....well they can melt so I assume if they can melt they can burn right???

mike04456 · Oct 30, 2003

----------------
On 10/30/2003 5:25:11 PM fire&ice wrote:

Stupid question - Do diamonds burn?
----------------

Well, it's not entirely a stupid question

... but... diamonds are crystallized carbon. In other words, think charcoal.

Diamonds will simply turn to carbon dioxide if heated sufficiently.

innerkitten · Oct 30, 2003

Good luck with everything Law gem and the rest of you down south. I heard about the fire fighter too, it's so sad. And judt imagine all the wild animals that are dying out there

ThatKoreanGuy · Oct 30, 2003

----------------
On 10/29/2003 3:49:16 AM ThatKoreanGuy wrote:

we should all do a rain dance =D

'imagine if it rained within' a week of this thread, how creepy that would be...'

----------------

OMG

Fog, drizzle help California firefighters

*cough* creepy *cough* that was within like....1 day. creeeeeeepy.

daboyzmomi · Oct 31, 2003

WOW,,,what a diffrence a week makes. Last Friday it was 102+,,,fire raging down the hill towards us. Now this Friday, it is barely 52 here and those same charred mountains have SNOW on them! Yes I said SNOW,,,,,can you believe it? I will take some pictures and post so you can see the before(fire) and the after(snow) shots. It is so funny. Thank goodness for it though!

Mara · Oct 31, 2003

Yeah it's gotten really cold in the Bayarea as well now too. Okay "really cold" is every other state's spring for us...but its cold compared to it being 90 last weekend.

CA Wildfires

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