Fire

 

I dreamed of fire last night. Not surprising, there was a wind and extreme fire weather alert for the area. PG&E is planning to cut power in the event of high wind events. This morning I see people posting about a fire in Paradise and Feather River Canyon. I look up the fire on the Cal Fire website and find it is already at 1000 acres with evacuations for the town of Paradise. I called Bob and he said he was about to leave. He is so slow about doing these things, I hope he got out. The routes out of town have all been engulfed with fire on both sides of the roadway. Many places I remember in Paradise are reportedly burning.

There is some light haze in my area, but nothing like the thick blanket covering Chico and Paradise. I expect the power to be cut later on today in advance of the predicted heavy winds. I'm listening to the scanner, the TV news and looking on Facebook for any reports or pictures of the situation. It looks like hell. I've been through it last year, and everyone in my area gets super paranoid and on edge every time there is even a hint of smoke or a breeze of more than 10 mph. We need rain. I can do nothing but sit and hope that nothing starts up in my area, resources are all being dispatched to Paradise. Fire is now 8,000 acres and no containment.

later
I spoke with Bob this evening. He made it out and is staying with Harold in Red Bluff, but he most likely won't have a home to go back to. The fire jumped to 18,000 acres in a couple of hours. Paradise is more densely populated than Loma Rica. The hospital and a school are destroyed and probably over 1000 homes. Many people are trapped, as the fire quickly cut off escape routes. It will be a while before a good accounting is done.

The smoke is going south west, so I am still not experiencing the smothering cloud. When I went out for my walk the wind was picking up, probably 15 mph, with gusts. I turned on the sprinklers, as has everyone in my neighborhood.  This massive human drama has eclipsed my own personal story. I still have plenty to feel sad about, watching my old home town and many places I have memories of go up in flames. My old house and neighborhood was right in the fire's path.

And sure, I am thinking about how Sharon would feel about her home and everything she grew up with getting destroyed. I'm remembering last year's fire, how we survived it, and I'm wishing she was here with me as this new tragedy unfolds. She was a newshound, and I know we'd be glued to the TV set and hanging on every update.

I used to look forward to apocalyptic events like this as a way to lessen my own fear of personal doom. Kinda the old "if I'm going, you're going with me" type of thing. Since the fire last year I stopped looking at it that way. I no longer find any solace in the giant boat of doom scenario. I'm wishing for the impossible, a no-doom scenario, where everybody is OK.

Power just flickered. Probably going to lose it soon in advance of the projected windstorm. I have plenty of candles and supplies for a power outage. It's just another fire that I am dreading as I listen to the wind chimes. That's it for now, my one reader. Goodnight.