Friday PM Updates after 15:25


Urbz' Weblog Station (resting now; be back later in the evening):
(Tomorrow I am losing my DSL connection to continue this page. The apartment we are going to requires $150 for the first month of DSL. I don't have $ for that (I have a family w/two teens). I am not asking for money; just informing when I go offline.)

CA Wildfire Information
Rim School District Photos of Schools A.F.
Ranger Al's Updates
Susan's 2020 Hindsight Blog

- A person on the hotline asked me to post the following: The mountain roads are closed to everyone, even residents.

- I just spoke with the PIO in Big Bear City. The fire in the Big Bear area has progressed, but very slowly. Officials are HOPING to allow residents back into the mountains on Sunday or Monday. [Radha, http://www.bigbear.us]

- Crews are coming down the mountain for the night due to the weather conditions. They need a deserved break.

- "2 nights ago I stopped posting just right before the Fire crew in Hook creek pulled out and endured the flashover inside of their trucks... windows so hot they could even touch them with gloves, not mention the paint on the trucks burning off. 1/2 hour in hell, not knowing if your days were up or not. The firemen on duty here are all people to be awed and thanked. Remember that whenever you see them after this is all over." [Charlietuna]

- "Arrowhead Ranch" (formerly the Int'l Ice Skating Training Center) is now open to firefighters with food and 200 cots!!! Pass this around; most of the crews do not know of it yet!

- Go to google and news and subscribe for news updates for "<City you live in>" and "Old Fire" and you'll get all the news articles as they are written. [message board]

- Many, many people are trying to get back up the mountain by any means necessary. Please refrain from doing this. We all want to go back (and yes, I own a 4x4) ASAP. The roads are EXTREMELY dangerous, not to mention the back roads. Falling trees and livewires are just the start of the issues. Let the professionals who are fighting this disaster do their job. We do not need to get in their way (the media is doing enough of that). If CHP finds you, there are consequences. They drive people down the hill and will drop you off wherever "down the hill" may be (it is not taxi ride), then you are taking THAT professional out of duty to help the firefighters. You are putting yourself at great risk and the others on the mountain. We are a close knit community, but things other than the fire, are getting compromised. Now, that is something we CAN control. We have websites and hotlines for information; use them. There are a few people giving us info from the mountain. Do you want to lose those contacts as well? Think about it.

- From pe.com, 11:49 am: At the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's South Operations headquarters in Riverside, officials were optimistic. The headquarters supervises firefighting operations from the San Joaquin Valley to Mexico. CDF officials said the Grand Prix and the Old Fire were a combined 25 percent contained as of 9:17 a.m. The Grand Prix Fire had burned 45,515 acres and the Old Fire had burned 49,880 acres as of 10 a.m. There are 3,100 firefighters battling the two blazes, using 14 helicopters, 491 fire engines and 13 bulldozers. "We are in a real critical catch-up phase in all firefighting activities today." Dehart said. "The key is what's happening with the weather," he said. "It remains cool in the mountains. The humidity is up. The immediate threat to structures and property is obviously not what it was three days ago." He said fire officials are "hoping for some more rainfall today, tonight and tomorrow. "We've still got a lot of potential for this to spread because there's so much dead fuel still standing and on the ground." If all goes well, he said, "the cool weather will continue, the humidity will remain high and we might get some periodic rain. "Even if that doesn't happen, we're much better off today than we were yesterday (Thursday) because firefighters have had a chance to get their second wind. They don't have to concentrate on structure protection. They're focusing on putting in these fire lines, which are so vital in the event the fire picks up again." Ed Crisostomo/The Press-Enterprise A shower of light rain and wet ash falls around LA County Fire Capt. Gary Walsh at the southern edge of Arrowbear Lake on Thursday, bringing firefighters the break they have been longing for. With the moderate weather, no homes were lost yesterday and firefighters began scraping a clear firebreak between burned and unburned forest.The threat to Big Bear has eased, although the community remains at risk, said Larry Benson, a spokesman for the Southern California fire operations center in Riverside.

- Running Springs: Major issues with rats (for those who remember the issue a few years ago after the fire.)

- The uncovered story is the windstorm that happened yesterday - many many downed tress that were not burned are all over the place. [Seth]

- Bring down all the type 1 engines because of expected snow tonight, starting at 1400 hours in shifts - 5 strike teams at a time. [Denny/Scanner]

- We have just driven the following roads and do not see any fire damage. Mile Pine Road south of Hwy 189 Behind the Market. Bear Springs road from Twin Peaks to Hwy 18 at Rim Forest. Middle Road north of Hwy 189 from end to end. Part of Resort Loop. Firehall Loop. Lodge Lane. The Twin peaks Community Church and the County buildings are fine. The Stars and Stripes were down at the Rim of The World Masonic temple between the church & the county bldgs. The flag is a bit filthy and tattered, but it's up now. [Phil]

- Rim Football coaches and Rim football Boosters are looking for all varsity football players for a spirit meet. Call Laura for more details at 499-6236, or Bobby Berteaux @ 909 855-4065.

- Running Springs: All perimeters are being held around RS. No homes have burned. CEDU and the Elementary School are intact. Concentrated efforts now are at Nob Hill and Enchanted Forest. Firemen are clearing the area of brush, etc, and felling dead trees at the rate of 10 per minute, but not on private land. Arrowbear is not threatened. The weather has given them time to rework the whole perimeter by spraying houses with retardent, removing furniture from around cabins, etc. on a house to house basis. The fire continues to move slowly, and weather is a major factor today. [Per RSFD]

- Fernrock area, Sierra Vista, 5-Points, Calvary Chapel, Clubhouse, Cedar, Lower Rose, Glen View, Grandview, Sky Ridge, Augusta, Bear Springs Road at water tanks-All areas fine-VISUAL ALL. The Strawberry Lodge structure fire is out. At 8am this morning the tree tops began icing up & we have had light intermittent snow fluries and ice balls. Wind remains a bit erratic. We met with Crest Forest Fire and were told that there is no immediate danger. It is wet, cold, foggy. No sight or smell of smoke. We spoke with the State of California Dept Of Health Svcs yeaterday and assured them that we had not at any time lost the water system, and are at 100% capacity. [Phil, AWUA]

- Banff, Mamooth, Yosemite, and Yellowstone are Clear :) One hell of a Firefight though, came real close. [JW]

- I work at the sheriff's station in Twin Peaks and spoke with someone that was in the squad room. Did not mention anything about being burnt down or suffering any damage to the building. I do know that it came about 1/2 mile to a mile away from the station. I was also told that the interior of Twin Peaks was still intact as well as the interior of Arrowhead. Will see if I can obtain any more actual info on other areas of the mountain. [message board]

- Two more units going to the fire behind the water treatment plant behind Camp Seeley (138); there are a lot of engines.

- I seem to be hearing that there are quite a few people who have still not found a place to stay, or who are stuck in shelters. If you own your home and have insurance, specifically "Loss of Use" on your insurance, you can usually be helped. If you speak to your agent, tell them you cannot return to your home, even if it is undamaged. They should help you with living expense money or help you find a place to stay at your insurance's expense. You will be responsible for paying your deductible. If you have accrued expenses already, they can usually count towards your deductible. We were told that due to it being a disaster area, our rates would not be affected. This info is from our own experience, yours may or may not be the same due to different insurance companies. Hope this helps someone. [From Rose Urbz]

- Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism to Offer Evacuation Rates at Palm Springs Hotels for Big Bear Lake, Arrowhead Lake, and Surrounding Communities. Residents of Big Bear Lake, Arrowhead Lake and all surrounding communities can get drastically reduced rates at Palm Springs Hotels during their evacuation period. Beginning Immediately- Evacuees can contact the Official Visitors Center and Hotel Reservation Center for participating hotels at: 1-800-347-7746.

- For what it is worth, I called Verizon @ 800-483-1000 and it reported a signal from our place in Rimforest. This is the best information I can get from the outside. [CJ]

- I have received many emails about specific addresses. As much as I would LOVE to share details, I do not have that information. I am trying to get verifications of areas in general, but it is hard to come by. Please be patient.

Posted: Fri - October 31, 2003 at 04:47 AM      

©