FA+
Shop
We're Okay...
6 years ago
-For now.
Sunday, August 25th, 2019, there was a small brush fire that erupted close to the junction of the 134 and 2 Freeways near the Eagle Rock and Glendale areas. Although the main blaze was nearly ten miles away from the house here in Pasadena, we did get a considerable amount of smoke, and some ashfall. By the time I went to bed at 10:00 PM the blaze was considered 25% "Contained" and the evacuation orders for homes closest to the fires had been lifted. Much to the relief of commuters, both freeways were re-opened before dawn, that Monday.
Life here at the house in the hills above Pasadena has pretty well returned to "Normal", but the situation did serve as a reminder of how quickly things can change around here in the communities up in the semi-wilderness areas close to the cities in California. Schirm, Sterling and I discussed evacuation plans, what to do with the cats, and updated our contact lists. The driveway has been cleared so the PFD can get a couple pumper rigs up here if need be.
On the plus side, I was treated to a rather stunning, "Classic" Red Sky at Morning. Even though I'm not really a Sailor, it is good to heed the warning, and stay wary.
"Peace".
Sunday, August 25th, 2019, there was a small brush fire that erupted close to the junction of the 134 and 2 Freeways near the Eagle Rock and Glendale areas. Although the main blaze was nearly ten miles away from the house here in Pasadena, we did get a considerable amount of smoke, and some ashfall. By the time I went to bed at 10:00 PM the blaze was considered 25% "Contained" and the evacuation orders for homes closest to the fires had been lifted. Much to the relief of commuters, both freeways were re-opened before dawn, that Monday.
Life here at the house in the hills above Pasadena has pretty well returned to "Normal", but the situation did serve as a reminder of how quickly things can change around here in the communities up in the semi-wilderness areas close to the cities in California. Schirm, Sterling and I discussed evacuation plans, what to do with the cats, and updated our contact lists. The driveway has been cleared so the PFD can get a couple pumper rigs up here if need be.
On the plus side, I was treated to a rather stunning, "Classic" Red Sky at Morning. Even though I'm not really a Sailor, it is good to heed the warning, and stay wary.
"Peace".
Keep on top of it Roy and keep us posted.
Glad you're doing all right.
Clearing off the driveway is a good plan (even if it means just moving the junk behind the bushes. Or the Obamas). My brother and I had a little satori a few years back. He had a drivable pickup, a 'good' car for trips and an older junk pickup he'd replaced but failed to have hauled off. I had a former daily-driver '91 Hyundai with a broken camshaft, a '95 Saturn SL2 with multiple problems (the sunroof leaked) and my 2004 Saturn Coupe. We had the three junkers hauled off after when we needed the well house pumped out one spring and the fire department had to come down the side road to access it. We've been down to three, all registered and drivable, ever since.
The 2004 Saturn Coupe went bye-bye when I traded it in on a new 2008 Toyota Solara (last year for the coupe). It had over 100,000 miles and the transmission was starting to make noise. Today I run around in a 2015 Toyota RAV4 I plan to drive until the wheels fall off. I paid cash for it new, a year before I lost my job. It'll have to do...
V.
Be prepared,
be prepared,
and unless you got a spare,
you got one life, so handle it with care
Knowing the local dangers and being ready to shelter for a while and/or evac immediately can mean the difference between life and death.
Was close enough to the Paradise fire, the air was either perfectly clear or choked with smoke just depending on which way the wind was blowing, so yeah... little paranoid about fire out here too.
The whole one-road-out was the real killer in a lot of was, and living in the backwood boonies, when the ground isn't slushy-wet, I'm on constant alert for smoke plumes, CalFire drop or spotter planes and the smell of wood smoke.
The folks from Paradise/Magalia lost everything in the sense of, there's no power, no water, no city, no services, no neighbors, no nothing. If it's just YOUR home that is destroyed, then rebuild and get on with life, but this was an entire town that burned, so for them, there will be no getting BACK to normal, they're going to have to build their own 'normal', whether it's where they used to live or rebuilding their lives somewhere else.
In fire-prone areas, is a solid slap-in-the-face reminder, be on the lookout, and during fire-hazard season, be ready to evac at a moment's notice.
Stuff can be fixed/replaced; you can't.
Be safe my friend.