Posts Tagged ‘northern california’
northern california fire update
This is the daily update as of Thursday, June 26th at 9PM, from the Northern California Joint Information Center.
Current Situation: State and Federal firefighters continue to battle hundreds of
wildfires throughout northern California and are preparing for light to moderate
dry thunderstorm activity beginning tonight through the weekend. Fires are
activity burning and continuing to spread. High winds predicted to increase fire
behavior through the weekend. Priority of firefighting effort is for the protection of
life, property and natural resources.
Fires: 1,090
Acres: 165,091
Contained Fires: 241
Personnel Committed: 12,512
Resources Committed:
• Engines: 933
• Crews: 288
• Dozers: 262
• Water Tenders: 303
• Helicopters: 68
• Air Tankers: 14
• Incident Management Teams: 26
• Management/Overhead Personnel: 18511
Highway closures: State highways and local roads are closed
throughout northern California due to wildfire activities. Closures and delays are
in place for state highway 32, 36, 70, 89, 96 and 299. Numerous county and
local roads are closed as well. Travelers are advised to check with law
enforcement agencies and transportation departments prior to traveling.
Evacuations: Areas of Butte, Shasta and Trinity counties are under
evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders are in place for
areas in Lassen, Modoc, Mendocino, Trinity and Shasta counties. Residents are
advised to monitor the fire situation in their areas, check with local law
enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when
necessary.
Structures Destroyed: 20 residences, 1 commercial, 20 outbuildings.
Seven victims, aged 15 to 30, were stabbed Sunday morning (June 22, 2008) at the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, with one victim requiring a life flight evacuation for a wound to the upper torso, in yet another tragic episode of ‘why drugs are bad’. I called the Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital to find out if the victim was ok, but the operator was unable to give me any information. I learned from the message boards that the victim was in stable condition.
Meanwhile, on Friday afternoon (June 20, 2008), lighting had passed through the area, igniting over a hundred blazes that would quickly choke the sky with a thick, unhealthy smoke. The Santa Rosa local paper, the Press Democrat, has good local coverage of the blazes which continue to rage. The air was so bad I slept in my car one night, and it reminded me of the San Diego fires in 2003. The sun was caught behind a smoky veil for the entire day, an orange globe trying to penetrate the haze. It is now hazy over the entire SF bay area. I woke up last night gasping for breath and had to break out my inhaler to help breathe.
