California Quickie
I just received word, fellow blogmates, that the amount of land that has burned here, thus far, is two times the area of the State of New York.
A report on my personal situation appears here at Glenn's blog. Thank you for your emails and support,
Tish in California
Updates in comments.
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The evacuees are pouring into our valley. Motor homes line our street, family and friends camping outside the residences of our neighbors. Motor home pads are in use, as well. The huge local high school has been annexed for evacuees from San Diego, estimated number from that area alone totals 250,000.
Citizen volunteers man the exits from the freeways into our city to check in evacuees by cell phone and route them to family, school, civic and church shelter and food areas.
The winds have died down, it was 107 in certain hot spots where smoke met smoke from over a dozen fires.
Fallbrook Hospital and the majority of Fallbrook have been evacuated. I was at the hospital in Wildomar, doing some ad hoc volunteering with orthopedic surgical patients who had also been blown down by mini-hurricanes of 90-100 mph -- as my friend G was. Physical therapist from Bulgaria told me who to walk and how to walk them, as post-surgical patients took their first baby steps with a walker. I was so overjoyed to see them able to walk, it might has well been a lunar landing!
Various freeways are alternatively closed and reopened to allow emergency vehicles unhindered access and to open channels to outbound and incoming evacuees. Firefighters are exhausted, sleeping in shifts on concrete clearings to renew strength to fight The Enemy, as my friend, Chief of Orange fire dept, terms the apocalyptic blazes.
October 24, 2007 7:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Glad you're OK Tish.
October 24, 2007 8:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
Teacher,
Glad you checked in. Let's post our interview in Nov. Tish
October 25, 2007 10:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hope the situation has improved out there, Tish. Guess what? I'll be interviewed on a local radio station about the JFK assassination on 11/15. I think it will air on 11/20.
October 30, 2007 8:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Perfect timing. Tish
October 31, 2007 12:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
Hard to be far away and know that we can only watch.
October 24, 2007 7:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hear that. Most of my mother's family is in Orange County, and according to them from yesterday, the fires were only 10 minutes from their homes.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Is est vicis muto probo.
Come visit PROJECT: Lucidity
Where everybody knows your name...
unless you use a pseudonym
October 25, 2007 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Eric, thanks for stopping by.
BTW, I gather that you are in Oregon. I used to live on a commune in Scappoose, 20 miles west of Portland. Our mentor was a labor organizer for lumber mills based in the Pacific Northwest.
I learned everything in my twenties about labor from Albert Kozlovsky --and that helped me a lot in my research in [apartheid] South Africa. I came to trust labor and wouldn't call it a day until I talked to labor, at least in Soweto. The testimony rang true and proved true, time and again.
I am also a CTA union member and have served my local in various capacities for the past 12 years. The spectrum of framing here ranges from a core labor model to the "professional association" model.
Are you labor-savvy? The reason I ask is familiarity with the political landscape/complexities of Oregon.
As an aside, a really dear friend of mine is a world champion log roller! She is based in Washington state government, now a senator, last I checked, strong pro-tribes advocacy.
Never been to Seattle, but have a desire to go, do B.C. and Alaska all in a swoop.
Hope your fam in OC is ok. I do a lot of professional work there and from what I hear from my OC friends tonight things are finally calming down as the winds abate.
Tish
October 25, 2007 11:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hi Ticia,
I've been in Portland for almost 8 years now (Halloween 1999). I admit, I don't usually go too far west unless it's to head to the coast, or go wine tasting. I'm unabashedly a city boy.
Seattle's a great place, too (I lived there for many years), although it's definitely different than Portland. It seems to be much more focused on business growth than sustainability. BC is great, too, although I wouldn't go for the shopping now (that's pretty much the main reason why people from the PacNW go to Vancouver).
I would consider myself fairly labor-savvy. However, I tend to not discuss my opinions on labor. It's an emotional, and financial issue with me; and I would say my opinions track with a very small minority of progressives.
From what I've learned from the family, things have died down pretty much since Saturday. Now it's a matter of cleanup. Luckily no fire damage.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Is est vicis muto probo.
Come visit PROJECT: Lucidity
Where everybody knows your name...
unless you use a pseudonym
October 29, 2007 5:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
T, thanks for stopping by. BTW, why don't you drop ship some of that wintry stuff from Chi out our way? Tish
October 25, 2007 10:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Morning, October 26, 2007
My best friend now lies in a hospital bed, struck down by the mini-hurricane winds of 90-100 mph that broke his hip; he is recovering from surgery and will be transferred to a rehabilitation hospital so he can learn to walk again.
The evacuation of hundreds of thousands of Californians came almost four years to the day of the Cedar Fire of 2003.
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in Los Angeles, Orange County, Poway, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties.
I have completed loading my photographs of the worse blaze in Southern California history. Email me if you want copies.
Thank you so much for sending out your kinds words, thoughts, and prayers for the Golden State.
Tish
October 26, 2007 11:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
Hey Tish. Sorry I'm a little late to this...Thanks for letting us know what was happening. Glad you're OK, and best wishes for your friend's recovery.
October 26, 2007 3:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Many Californians have been affected in San Diego, Orange County and Los Angeles Counties. To become aware of support efforts for victims in those areas, the following links may be helpful.
Thanks so much for staying in touch. It is drizzling rain, as I write, Saturday 9:42 pm Pacific.
Tish
October 27, 2007 11:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Deleted duplicate comment.
October 30, 2007 8:12 PM | Reply | Permalink