It looks like this will be the last fire update.
A quick scan of the rimoftheworld.net site confirms what Lee and Kim told us yesterday, that being that residents can now return to the mountain. The mandatory evacuation is now a voluntary one. There are still a few places where residents cannot return, but I'd say 95% of those displaced by the fire can return. That's actually very good because I was under the impression that because of downed power lines and other potential dangers, it was possible that the mandatory evacuation might last significantly longer.
It looks like the fires are basically out. The Grass Valley fire appears to no longer be a threat. The Slide fire is mostly out, with just a few "hot spots".
Monday, October 29, 2007
Job Update (and other stuff) ...
Hey all,
So I'm back from my whirlwind tour of Lake Geneva/Waukesha (the location of the company with which I interviewed). It was a pretty good trip, complete with airplane troubles.
The job interview went well. I received a job offer Sunday night. The company is very good. I was impressed by everything I saw. The only drawback is there would be some (they say 50% in order to prepare you for "worst case") travel required. I'm talking with them today to try to understand more specifically what that level of travel would actually be. They want a reply by Friday, but I'm assuming we'll decide before that.
The rest of the time there (there wasn't much of it), I hung out with the Casparis a bit (including several sessions of "chase me" with Ben and Sarah which left me sweating), had a few meals with Mom and Dad, and drove around Saturday afternoon to see the pretty leaves.
The excitement for the weekend came on Sunday when I was trying to fly out. The first plane was grounded for mechanical problems. They took us off that plane and on a backup plane which was also grounded for mechanical problems. Then they put us on standby for a different O'Hare to OC flight, but I didn't get on that. Then they brought us back to the second plane and loaded us up. Then we had to wait another 15 minutes for more maintenance. Then we finally left and had an uneventful flight. After all that, I was only about 2 1/2 or so hours late, but it was an adventure!
Cyndie had a bit of a rough day Saturday. The kids were not being very helpful, and pretty whiny. The good news is that Timmy made it 3 days without and accident, so he got to go pick out a new toy from the store. He and Papa Lee found a cool thing that has a roll of different "Cars" pictures to color. You roll out the picture, and it kind of holds in place, and then you can tear it off when you are done. He's having a lot of fun with that.
There's not a lot else to report.
Neal
So I'm back from my whirlwind tour of Lake Geneva/Waukesha (the location of the company with which I interviewed). It was a pretty good trip, complete with airplane troubles.
The job interview went well. I received a job offer Sunday night. The company is very good. I was impressed by everything I saw. The only drawback is there would be some (they say 50% in order to prepare you for "worst case") travel required. I'm talking with them today to try to understand more specifically what that level of travel would actually be. They want a reply by Friday, but I'm assuming we'll decide before that.
The rest of the time there (there wasn't much of it), I hung out with the Casparis a bit (including several sessions of "chase me" with Ben and Sarah which left me sweating), had a few meals with Mom and Dad, and drove around Saturday afternoon to see the pretty leaves.
The excitement for the weekend came on Sunday when I was trying to fly out. The first plane was grounded for mechanical problems. They took us off that plane and on a backup plane which was also grounded for mechanical problems. Then they put us on standby for a different O'Hare to OC flight, but I didn't get on that. Then they brought us back to the second plane and loaded us up. Then we had to wait another 15 minutes for more maintenance. Then we finally left and had an uneventful flight. After all that, I was only about 2 1/2 or so hours late, but it was an adventure!
Cyndie had a bit of a rough day Saturday. The kids were not being very helpful, and pretty whiny. The good news is that Timmy made it 3 days without and accident, so he got to go pick out a new toy from the store. He and Papa Lee found a cool thing that has a roll of different "Cars" pictures to color. You roll out the picture, and it kind of holds in place, and then you can tear it off when you are done. He's having a lot of fun with that.
There's not a lot else to report.
Neal
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Fire Update 12:30p (10/25)
From rimoftheworld.net ...
According to scanner reports at 10:50 am, the Slide Fire is making an active run in the Crab Flats area. Structures are threatened at this time.
As of 10:30 am, the Slide Fire remained at 0% containment and had consumed 12,466 acres according to reports. The Grass Valley Fire is 40% contained and has burned about 1,100 acres. Damage assessment teams are starting work in the area to provide details on structures destroyed, with dangerous access due to continued fire activity, according to the US Forest Service. No additional structures were damaged yesterday on the Grass Valley Fire; however, additional homes were lost to the Slide Fire.
The US Forest Service projects that both fires will move to the southwest. Over 6,000 homes remain threatened by the Grass Valley fire and 10,000 by the Slide Fire.
Specifics on structures destroyed will be verified as soon as it is safe to enter the burned areas. Fire perimeter containment efforts are slow due to rough terrain, heavy vegetation and high density residential properties intermixed with bug killed timber.
According to scanner reports at 10:50 am, the Slide Fire is making an active run in the Crab Flats area. Structures are threatened at this time.
As of 10:30 am, the Slide Fire remained at 0% containment and had consumed 12,466 acres according to reports. The Grass Valley Fire is 40% contained and has burned about 1,100 acres. Damage assessment teams are starting work in the area to provide details on structures destroyed, with dangerous access due to continued fire activity, according to the US Forest Service. No additional structures were damaged yesterday on the Grass Valley Fire; however, additional homes were lost to the Slide Fire.
The US Forest Service projects that both fires will move to the southwest. Over 6,000 homes remain threatened by the Grass Valley fire and 10,000 by the Slide Fire.
Specifics on structures destroyed will be verified as soon as it is safe to enter the burned areas. Fire perimeter containment efforts are slow due to rough terrain, heavy vegetation and high density residential properties intermixed with bug killed timber.
Fire Update 8:20a (10/25)
From rimoftheworld.net ...
With most of the active fire in rugged wilderness areas south and east of Running Springs, very little new information was available overnight. Crews worked overnight to continue to douse hot spots and shore up fire lines. Winds subsided and slowed the progress of the fire. The Grass Fire in the Lake Arrowhead area showed very little activity, with some limited burning well within the fire's perimeter. The Slide Fire near Running Springs did have some active burning with 3 to 6 foot flame lengths reported overnight.
As of 11:30 PM, the Grass Fire had consumed 1,100 acres. Over 100 homes were lost, primarily in the Grass Valley area. No homes were lost in Twin Peaks, despite earlier reports. The primary concern for the 1,051 fire personnel is the eastern side of the fire as winds are expected to shift today. The fire growth potential remains high, according to the US Forest Service.
Firefighters worked tirelessly to successfully save two camps from the flames near Green Valley Lake. Both the Calvary Chapel Camp and the Cedar Crest Camp were saved. Fire crews along with 12 engines and two bulldozers kept the flames at bay.
With most of the active fire in rugged wilderness areas south and east of Running Springs, very little new information was available overnight. Crews worked overnight to continue to douse hot spots and shore up fire lines. Winds subsided and slowed the progress of the fire. The Grass Fire in the Lake Arrowhead area showed very little activity, with some limited burning well within the fire's perimeter. The Slide Fire near Running Springs did have some active burning with 3 to 6 foot flame lengths reported overnight.
As of 11:30 PM, the Grass Fire had consumed 1,100 acres. Over 100 homes were lost, primarily in the Grass Valley area. No homes were lost in Twin Peaks, despite earlier reports. The primary concern for the 1,051 fire personnel is the eastern side of the fire as winds are expected to shift today. The fire growth potential remains high, according to the US Forest Service.
Firefighters worked tirelessly to successfully save two camps from the flames near Green Valley Lake. Both the Calvary Chapel Camp and the Cedar Crest Camp were saved. Fire crews along with 12 engines and two bulldozers kept the flames at bay.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Fire Update 2:15p (10/24)
From rimoftheworld.net
Despite poor visibility, firefighters are making good progress on the Slide and Grass Fires today. Poor visiblity has prevented the fixed wing aircraft from making drops, but 14 helicopters are working both the Slide and Grass Fires along with over a thousand fire personnel. The fire has continued to burn toward Big Bear with news helicopters placing it 2 miles to the west of the Big Bear Dam. However, its progress has slowed as it has moved into the burn area for the Butler Fires, and firefighters are optimistic about the eastward progress halting.
Chief Michael Sherman, from the Crest Forest Fire District, stated that the department is "cautiously optimistic" about the progress of the firefighting in the district communities. Crest Forest Fire District serves Crestline, Cedarpines Park, Valley of Enchantment, Rim Forest and Twin Peaks. He stated that the district "has not suffered any structural losses at this time."
Despite poor visibility, firefighters are making good progress on the Slide and Grass Fires today. Poor visiblity has prevented the fixed wing aircraft from making drops, but 14 helicopters are working both the Slide and Grass Fires along with over a thousand fire personnel. The fire has continued to burn toward Big Bear with news helicopters placing it 2 miles to the west of the Big Bear Dam. However, its progress has slowed as it has moved into the burn area for the Butler Fires, and firefighters are optimistic about the eastward progress halting.
Chief Michael Sherman, from the Crest Forest Fire District, stated that the department is "cautiously optimistic" about the progress of the firefighting in the district communities. Crest Forest Fire District serves Crestline, Cedarpines Park, Valley of Enchantment, Rim Forest and Twin Peaks. He stated that the district "has not suffered any structural losses at this time."
Fire Update 10:45 a (10/24)
More good news on the fire front (from rimoftheworld.net) ...
According to John Miller of the US Forest Service, the westward advance of the Slide Fire stalled overnight. Flames got as far west as Heaps Peak between the waste transfer station and the radio towers. The front to the south of Green Valley Lake has moved toward Highway 18 and Snow Valley. It was less than 1/4 mile from the highway.
In the Running Springs area, catastrophic fire activity burned through Fredalba and Smiley Park with widespread losses. The fire burned along the southern edge of Running Springs, eastward, to the Rimwood Ranch area. In Green Valley Lake, only 80 of the nearly 1,200 homes were destroyed, according to news reports.
Damage assessment teams have begun the difficult task of surveying property and infrastructure damage. They began in the Green Valley Lake area and will work their way westward into Arrowbear Lake and the Running Springs area. Maps will be available as soon as the survey is complete. A briefing is being planned at the evacuation center at the Orange Show Fairgrounds in San Bernardino this afternoon. We will update the site when a time has been determined.
According to John Miller of the US Forest Service, the westward advance of the Slide Fire stalled overnight. Flames got as far west as Heaps Peak between the waste transfer station and the radio towers. The front to the south of Green Valley Lake has moved toward Highway 18 and Snow Valley. It was less than 1/4 mile from the highway.
In the Running Springs area, catastrophic fire activity burned through Fredalba and Smiley Park with widespread losses. The fire burned along the southern edge of Running Springs, eastward, to the Rimwood Ranch area. In Green Valley Lake, only 80 of the nearly 1,200 homes were destroyed, according to news reports.
Damage assessment teams have begun the difficult task of surveying property and infrastructure damage. They began in the Green Valley Lake area and will work their way westward into Arrowbear Lake and the Running Springs area. Maps will be available as soon as the survey is complete. A briefing is being planned at the evacuation center at the Orange Show Fairgrounds in San Bernardino this afternoon. We will update the site when a time has been determined.
Fire Update 9:15a (10/24)
Hey all, this from rimoftheworld.net:
A wind change overnight has slowed the advance of the fire and spread smoke in the Big Bear area for the first time. Fourteen helicopters are staging at Big Bear Airport and have begun heading to assignments within the fires. Additionally, air tankers, including Tanker 910, are expected to provide a continual aerial bombardment of fire retardant at five minute intervals. Sheriff's Officers, when they are not checking on looters, arsonists, and gawkers, are canvassing the area reporting any spot fires that are nearing homes. Today is the day the fires will feel our retaliation.
So it looks like things are going as well as can be expected. I had heard that since the Santa Anas were dying down, and were being replaced by onshore winds that this would affect the fires. It looks like its affected the mountain fires in a positive way, slowing advancement and effectively turning the fires on themselves a bit.
More later as it becomes available.
A wind change overnight has slowed the advance of the fire and spread smoke in the Big Bear area for the first time. Fourteen helicopters are staging at Big Bear Airport and have begun heading to assignments within the fires. Additionally, air tankers, including Tanker 910, are expected to provide a continual aerial bombardment of fire retardant at five minute intervals. Sheriff's Officers, when they are not checking on looters, arsonists, and gawkers, are canvassing the area reporting any spot fires that are nearing homes. Today is the day the fires will feel our retaliation.
So it looks like things are going as well as can be expected. I had heard that since the Santa Anas were dying down, and were being replaced by onshore winds that this would affect the fires. It looks like its affected the mountain fires in a positive way, slowing advancement and effectively turning the fires on themselves a bit.
More later as it becomes available.
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