California WildFires 2017

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According to my Napa friend who is now in a hotel after fleeing for his life last night, [FONT=&quot]21 people have died so far, more than 500 are missing and those numbers are expected to rise. There are 8,000 firefighters, 550 fire trucks, 73 helicopters and more than 30 planes[/FONT][FONT=&quot] . [/FONT][FONT=&quot]More than 25,000 people have been ordered to evacuate with more anticipated. Shelters are full. Most roads are closed. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]Calistoga was ordered evacuated this afternoon. Wind gusts of 30 to 40 MPH are predicted for tonight.

And someone said the media is exaggerating?
It's catastrophic and heart wrenching...for people affected, for animals, wildlife, the wine industry, for everything.

Here in Southern CA near the coast where I live, due to the Anaheim area fires (now more or less under control) the sun was red, the air thick and pinkish and eerie, but this is nothing compared to what people are experiencing in the north. :([/FONT]
 
LaborDayRN said:
BBM: This. I'm really surprised at how little national coverage this is getting. If you turn on most of the "news channels" it's Trump and Weinstein. What about those suffering in CA?
Click to expand...

I have constantly searched for news on the fires for the last three days. Sick of Trump and Weinstein news too. Blech.

We're a family of Southern Californians that no longer live in the state and my son called tonight from his home in MI to chat and asked what was new so I began by telling him all of our Northern California family and friends were safe for the moment and he said why? What's going on? He had no idea. Now granted he's a workaholic but when I said I was sick of hearing about Weinstein he had heard that news. Absolutely sickening that its not getting more coverage.

My heart is with all of those in harms way and my tears for those that have already suffered. What a terrible year it has been so far.
 
CNN: 23 reported dead and hundreds still missing. :(

I can never get CNN to link if there is a video. Someone told me how and I didn’t write it down. Anyway, the story is there right now.
 
This is terrible. Australia also has devastating fires like this every few years. If we have had a dry winter, the risk increases. We are facing drier and drier winters in temperate zones.
 
Satellite photos:

http://www.businessinsider.com/california-wildfires-pictures-satellites-burning-homes-2017-10

"On Wednesday night, DigitalGlobe — a satellite imaging company that captures 100 terabytes' worth of new photos of Earth each day — released some of the first close-up views of the disaster from orbit.

"Although there is a lot of smoke in the area, shortwave infrared (SWIR) can penetrate the smoke and detect heat beneath," DigitalGlobe wrote on its website."
 
This post is spot on. I'm in the SF Bay Area and the air is heavy with the smell of smoke. I cannot even fathom what these people are going through at this time. I saw what destruction looks like back in the '91 Oakland hills fire.

There are so many wonderful charities involved and as a animal foster here's a great big thank you to all that are opening up their homes to help. I received an email today from one organization that over 100 new homes have joined up to offer room for the animals coming in. :heartbeat:


whitelilac said:
According to my Napa friend who is now in a hotel after fleeing for his life last night, [FONT=&amp]21 people have died so far, more than 500 are missing and those numbers are expected to rise. There are 8,000 firefighters, 550 fire trucks, 73 helicopters and more than 30 planes[/FONT][FONT=&amp] . [/FONT][FONT=&amp]More than 25,000 people have been ordered to evacuate with more anticipated. Shelters are full. Most roads are closed. [/FONT][FONT=&amp]Calistoga was ordered evacuated this afternoon. Wind gusts of 30 to 40 MPH are predicted for tonight.

And someone said the media is exaggerating?
It's catastrophic and heart wrenching...for people affected, for animals, wildlife, the wine industry, for everything.

Here in Southern CA near the coast where I live, due to the Anaheim area fires (now more or less under control) the sun was red, the air thick and pinkish and eerie, but this is nothing compared to what people are experiencing in the north. :([/FONT]
Click to expand...
 
(CNN)Alarming conditions again face firefighters trying to contain deadly blazes that have ravaged tens of thousands of acres in Northern California as winds -- somewhat gusty Thursday but probably growing even stronger by the weekend -- threaten more devastation.

Fires have ravaged Northern California's wine country since Sunday night, killing at least 23 people and destroying at least 3,500 structures, authorities said.

At least 285 people are reported missing in Sonoma County alone, where a fire wiped out parts of Santa Rosa, a city of about 175,000 people roughly 50 miles northwest of San Francisco.

[video=cnn;us/2017/10/09/wildfires-rage-in-californias-wine-country-orig-trnd-lab.cnn]http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/12/us/california-fires-updates/index.html[/video]

I'm concerned that the number of missing is increasing. I had hoped that by this time people would have been able to access a way to notify family that they are okay. This is really worrying me.
 
This is a serious, critical, catastrophic event,” Cal Fire Chief Ken Pimlott said.

At least 23 people have been killed by the fires in Sonoma, Napa, Mendocino and Yuba counties, where 3,500 homes and businesses had been burned at last count. Officials expect the death toll to rise — perhaps significantly — when officers begin going into the “hot zones” that were immolated in the firestorm.

“We can’t even get into most of the areas,” Sonoma County Sheriff Robert Giordano said. “When we start doing searches, I expect that number to go up.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...-and-hundreds-missing/?utm_term=.36022317a96f
 
I saw that Canine Companions for Independence evacuated their headquarters in Santa Rosa, just for the fact that they have a lot of dogs and didn't want to worry about having to suddenly evacuate if they got that order. My friend works at a dog training facility in SR and said the fire is 'a few miles' away when I first asked. Now I'm really worried for her with how quickly this seems to overtake and the fact that there are a lot of dogs they might have to get out. A few miles doesn't seem far at all.

I wonder if more firefighters are coming in to try and help. I think too people need to get out so FFs aren't as focused on saving them and can be more focused on fighting the fire. In my head, though, I know that's probably easier said than done. I just want them to start getting this detained, as I'm sure they do.
 
Sky is much clearer here in Sac, but I think that has much more to do with winds than anything else.
 
whitelilac said:
According to my Napa friend who is now in a hotel after fleeing for his life last night, [FONT="]21 people have died so far, more than 500 are missing and those numbers are expected to rise. There are 8,000 firefighters, 550 fire trucks, 73 helicopters and more than 30 planes[/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#1D2129][FONT="] . [/FONT][FONT="]More than 25,000 people have been ordered to evacuate with more anticipated. Shelters are full. Most roads are closed. [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#1D2129][FONT="]Calistoga was ordered evacuated this afternoon. Wind gusts of 30 to 40 MPH are predicted for tonight.

And someone said the media is exaggerating?
It's catastrophic and heart wrenching...for people affected, for animals, wildlife, the wine industry, for everything.

Here in Southern CA near the coast where I live, due to the Anaheim area fires (now more or less under control) the sun was red, the air thick and pinkish and eerie, but this is nothing compared to what people are experiencing in the north. :([/FONT]
Click to expand...

So sad. I love Calistoga.
 
Whole subdivisions are gone. A few days ago people had to flee in the middle of the night, leaving behind pets and sentimental items because maybe their neighbor's house was on fire already, or because their own house was already on fire when they were alerted by bangs on their door, and for a lot of people - they were only alerted when gas lines exploded and they had to leave NOW. All in the middle of the night.

I heard on a radio news show that overnight 42,000 acres burned last night. They have no control over it. They are still simply evacuating people, and not really having the resources to try to contain it. Transformers and downed lines continue to spark new fires in new areas.

This is really bad. Katrina bad. Thousands of families are now displaced and have lost everything. Every picture, every pet, every favorite chair, every expensive wall hanging, every handed down piece of jewelry, every favorite coffee cup, every memory has been wiped out. Fire is the devil. it's cleansing. It destroys fully. You don't go back and salvage something that was wet or dirtied. It;s incinerated. Gone. Forever. Can you grasp it? For thousands of people?

And it's not stopping. The winds continue. People are dead. 23 confirmed, a couple hundred missing. I am missing people. Real life people who love others, are kind and giving and beautiful people who happen to live in the area. They aren't winery owners. They are accountants and retail salespersons at the grocery store. They are mommies and truck drivers. The loss of wineries is the least concerning loss in these fires. They will grow back. Trees will grow back. But where will all of these people live? Where will the dead be buried? Where are all the cats and dogs that got left behind? Have you seen the pictures of the charred horses and cattle? Can you grasp the loss yet? And it's not stopping!
 
GigTu said:
That makes me want to throw up. So many lives have just been turned upside down. It's so sad, and I can't believe WS hasn't exploded with comments and interest over this devastating and dangerous situation.

I have a friend who lives in Napa that just yesterday told me the media was sensationalizing and exaggerating the situation. I honestly don't think she had left her home to know the truth of what is happening. I am glad she is lucky that the firestorms have avoided her area so far, but I'm a little mad that she was being so cold and unfeeling about the losses of property and lives - human and animal. I hope she continues to be fortunate, and shows some sympathy and compassion for her community.
Click to expand...

Oh my goodness, its hard to comprehend how anyone could be this cold and nonchalant over this massive devastation and loss of lives.

Even if it hasn't struck her area surely she watches the news and can see for herself how bad all of these raging fires are?

I have a good friend in AZ and she was telling me one of her best friends goes to this same area in CA three months out of the year to another home she has there. She said N has already had to flee her home and go to a church with her little dog. Then it got dangerous to be at the church so she has had to rush back to her home hoping the winds don't push it toward her home again. It has to be so terrifying trying to decide where to flee for safety and then realize they arent safe in that place after all.

My heart and prayers are with all who have been affected by these monster fires. There as to be nothing more frightening than to see fire everywhere.

I also pray that all of the hundreds who are missing have been able to find safe refuge somewhere and have no way to contact their loved one.
 
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-northern-california-wildfires-20171012-story.html
With an estimated 50,000 people having left their homes for shelters and hotels, police continued to work to locate several hundred people reported missing by panicked relatives and friends. Authorities said that with communications hobbled by downed cellphone towers and people making hasty escapes, they were hopeful that most, if not all, would turn up safe.

Through the night and into Wednesday morning, the devastating Atlas Peak and Tubbs fires continued to churn, feeding on tinder-dry vegetation made thicker by the winter’s heavy rainfall. The Atlas Peak fire, which has menaced the town of Napa since Sunday, nearly doubled in size to 46,000 acres and began to push south, creating a new threat to Fairfield, a Bay Area city along Interstate 80

And the Tubbs fire, which ignited Sunday night in the hills above Santa Rosa and claimed at least 13 lives when it stormed into the city and surrounding areas, reversed its direction and began a push north. With the fire’s about-face, Calistoga was at risk. At 3:30 a.m., county and town officials there joined police officers in going house to house in one neighborhood, telling people to leave. By afternoon, they decided to clear the entire town.
Click to expand...
This is about people, not wineries. It's not stopping.
 
[FONT=arial, sans-serif]I have no words....it's cataclysmic[/FONT]

[FONT=arial, sans-serif]State fire Chief Ken Pimlott was equally blunt: "It’s going to continue to get worse before it gets better.”[/FONT]

The sheriff also expects the death toll to climb. “The devastation is enormous,” he said. “We can’t even get into most areas.”

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...-fed-more-strong-winds-low-humidit/756944001/
 
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