Standby and Devastation

What people in southern California are enduring during Inferno 2007 is heart-breaking, yet the behavior of most of them is profoundly inspiring. People all around the area are pitching in to help one another and so many of those who have lost their homes are managing somehow to hold their heads high and look to the future. Jim is on standby to help evacuate horses for a fellow who is a cousin of a friend. (That fellow and his property appear to be safe now. Still, like many in our part of the world, his trailer remains packed and headed out in case he has to load animals and get out in a hurry.) Monday evening, that friend of ours left dinner with us a little early to evacuate cats for a work colleague. (In that case it was only a precaution, thank goodness) On the other hand, a woman who is a key figure in the southern California endurance racing world (she and her daughter run a couple of rides) lost everything Monday evening except their eleven horses and what tack they could throw in the trailer. When I heard about a fire in the Temecula region, my heart stopped for a second. We have a friend down there with forty-fifty horses on her place. I can’t reach her, but after scanning the internet for fire updates I feel somewhat relieved. It appears the fire is far enough from her to make her anxious, but not require evacuation. San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium and Del Mar Race Track are packed with refugee humans and horses. Let’s hope the weather predictions are accurate and we get some changes fairly soon.

Smoky Sky and Wind Damage

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Earlier today, I grabbed the G7 and stepped outside to get some snapshots. I was intrigued by the eerie light resulting from the thick smoke hanging heavy in the sky. Within seconds, I was coughing and choking. Ultimately, I was concentrating on breathing, not getting pictures. I grabbed a couple of shots before I dashed back inside, where I gave thanks for our blessed good fortune to be a safe distance (so far) from the center of these fire-storms and for air conditioning.

The first candid shows the small band of clear sky between the horizon and the wall of smoke. The second one shows what happens when a mere fence meets a Santa Ana gust. The fence is across the street. We came through all right. You don't count small broken tree branches as damage during one of these events and so far that, along with a couple of plants toppled off tables and some lawn furniture left in strange positions is all we have on our property as evidence of the Devil Wind that swept through our part of the valley. We are deeply grateful. One report I heard said that a million people have been evacuated.