SoCal Fires Live Thread 10/28

10/28/03 | Myself

[spectr17]

SoCal Fires Live Thread 10/28

[Fitzcarraldo]

"...210 closure also..."

what's going on? fire breakout?

[lainie]

uhoh that does not sound like good news.

[Fitzcarraldo]

something about victims...

[dogbyte12]

Wasn't much of that section burned out before, is the old section rekindling near the 210/15?

[Fitzcarraldo]

yes, the fire is spreading toward 7 oaks.

is that 7 oaks in the bottom of the canyon, just south of sugar loaf and north of grinnel peak?

[Poohbah]

I realize it's tough to land a chopper on a mountainside in heavy winds. But how hard is it to fly several hundred feet above a fire and drop water?

In 1985, I rode in a CH-53E Super Stallion over a small fire near Saddleback. We were 1,000 feet AGL, and we still got bounced around a bit.

400-500 feet AGL in a much lighter Seahawk over the Cedar Canyon fire would be...ahem...an experience.

[Travis McGee]

/1/ At least some of the fires were known to have been set by arsonists. See the police artist's drawing above.

/2/ ELF arsonists are extremely active in SoCal, proudly takeing credit for burning custom homes, apartment complexes, and SUV dealerships. They hate anywhere humans live on "natural" land, which is most of what has been burned.

/3/ Last week the FBI was searching for a pro-Palestinean Green Party radical who was seen unbolting power towers, in the days before these Santa Ana winds were forecast.

/4/ The FBI reports that Al Queda has plans to set massive forest and brush fires in the USA as a terror weapon.

Look at the fire maps of SoCal and ponder the coincidence of so many over so wide an area, even given Santa Ana winds. If this series of fires has nothing to do with terrorism, it certainly was compounded by arson, that's a known fact. Certainly we had BETTER PREPARE for these types of massive coordinated arson-terror events, Al Queda says they are going to do it, so we had better prepare for many more firestorms like these burning today.

Meanwhile, 100 Navy Seahawk helicopters are sitting idle, ten minutes from the fires.

[Fitzcarraldo]

There sending traffic back toward Victorville!

[Conservative4Ever]

Spectr would know more on this...but now the winds are a major factor. Your earlier apt description was very good, Mom. This is a mountain range folks...elevation ummmmm 8-9 thousand ft. Further east Mt. San Gorgonio is the highest mountain in SoCal at a little over 10,000ft. This might help with perspective. As Mom said..nearly sheer drop to the vally floor from the 18 where they are fighting this thing.

[dogbyte12]

I think helicopters can only fly up to 10,000 feet. Going up near their peak height, in wind, with fires, carrying water is not a routine procedure. Lives right now are more important than real estate. That is just how we are prioritizing things.

[PhiKapMom]

They just announced on KFI they are now closing I-15 through the Cajon Pass because of fires.

[PhiKapMom]

I heard it was closed at the Cajon Pass -- wonder if that is a smoke problem or is there fire in that area as well?

[Conservative4Ever]

thanks for the info...explains alot. My thought was to give the rest of Freeperland a perspective that this is a mountain range, not just some local rolling hills. :)

[lainie]

I just got live365 to let me in

[Fitzcarraldo]

In Mexico, you just drive through the fires! On our way to Ensenada, there was a brush fire and we were on a toll road and we just gunned it! No problemo.

[maggief]

Flare up - Devore (?)

[maggief]

Great - one of the choppers is preparing to dump.

[lainie]

KFI -- fire officials want everybody off the mountain, Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead voluntary evacuations

[lainie]

you hear that, Mr. Arrogant KTLA guy in Arrowhead? /sarc

[PhiKapMom]

I will bet that is it with the winds starting to pick up!