California Fires

DS

Fenderbender
I`m watching the news and its unbelievable.250,000 homes evacuated,1500 national guard called in.I prey this does not affect any of my friends here in the cafe.
 

cheryl

I started this.
Staff member
I`m watching the news and its unbelievable.250,000 homes evacuated,1500 national guard called in.I prey this does not affect any of my friends here in the cafe.
At my house here in SJC it's been smokey all day and there are ashes in the air, but there are no fires nearby. The closest fire is in Foothill Ranch which is a good 20 miles away. The next closest was Santiago Canyon which is 25 or 30 miles away...

San Diego is in major trouble, 300,000 now evacuated... Moreluck is in San Clemente which has no fires that I know of at the moment.
 

RockyRogue

Agent of Change
San Diego is in major trouble, 300,000 now evacuated...

Before my grandmother's death several years ago, she lived in the area getting hit by the fires now. Are they forecasting danger to the City of San Diego itself or is this really just confined to the suburbs and/or areas to the east? -Rocky
 

cheryl

I started this.
Staff member
There are at least 14 fires burning in Southern CA. A short time ago I dropped someone off at the OC airport, 25 or 30 miles from my house. The whole way there the air was thick with smoke.

I took the 73 toll road back to SJC and from that vantage point I could see huge plumes of smoke billowing up into the sky from the fires in Santiago, Modjeska, and Silverado canyons . Southern California usually has santa ana winds and wildfires this time of year, the two are a terrible combination. This is definitely one of the worst fire years I have ever seen.

San Diego: More than a thousand homes have burned, mostly in north county. The radio just said that 346,000 homes have been evacuated, 20,000 of the people who have been evacuted are currently at qualcom stadium.

Arrowhead: at least 160 homes destroyed.
 

cheryl

I started this.
Staff member
Thanks Helen but the fires aren't really close to my house, the closest is about 20 miles away. The winds have died down so it doesn't look like there is much of a chance that the fires will spread this far.

It's been a brutal day. There are well over a thousand people in Southern California that have lost their homes. It's not over yet, my daughter's friend may come to stay in our guest room tonight because of the fire burning a couple of miles from his house.

I am very grateful our city has been spared, at least so far.
 

UPS Lifer

Well-Known Member
My wife and I made the trek back from Sedona on the 10 through Palm Springs and the Inland Empire on Monday. The smoke mixed with the dust and the visibility was down to a quarter mile most of the way home from Banning.

The winds in Corona are finally calm. On Sunday my son told us the house was shaking during sustained hurricane force winds and he was sure we were going to have wind damage if it kept up. Fortunately we have sustained no structural damage (just a lot of clean up!). Our city borders the Cleveland National Forest but so far the fires have been on the Orange Cty side...that could change! The news says that the red flag condition should be over by 4 PM on Wednesday.

I have relatives in the Portola Cyn area of Orange Cty. The last time I checked they were under non-mandatory evacuation...and were staying put.

I hope that MoreLuck is OK in San Diego Cty.

The latest report said that 1 million people have been evacuated and Pres Bush will be in SoCal tomorrow.

Please keep SoCal - SEC - WLA - UPS employees in your thoughts and prayers as they struggle through personal as well as work related challanges these coming days.
 

UPS Lifer

Well-Known Member
An update on San Diego County damage estimates 1 BILLION dollars.

Overall - 7 counties affected
1500 homes destroyed
over 600 square miles burned
1 million people evacuated.
Winds have died down but there is still an off shore condition and the humidity has gone up from single digits to double digits, which suggests that there is some what of an on shore flow from the ocean. They expect the coastal temps to drop 5 degrees or so. Our area is still expected to hit about 93 degrees!

My brother owns "Rawhide" in Bonsail in San Diego county. It is in a rural area and I am not sure how it has faired through the fires.

Obviously, there is nothing else on TV. I am watching live shots of Trabuco Cyn where my wife's brother's home is being threathened. He said they are packed and ready to go. But they have been told their area will receive massive air drops this morning to protect the homes.
 

cheryl

I started this.
Staff member
I heard that the Trabuco fire was arson :cursing: .
The winds here have really died down so I hope that all of those fires die down today.

Your brother owns Rawhide? Is that the ranch that hosts large groups? When my daughter was young she and Tony were in Indian Princesses for several years and their tribe spent several weekends at Rawhide Ranch. It was one of her favorite destinations because of the horses, llamas and other animals.
 

traveler

Where next? Venice
The difference in the shelter at Qualcom and that in New Orleans is quite striking. Our local newspaper, the Orlando Sentinel had an article how everyone from President Bush, FEMA, the governor (Arrnolt) and the local mayors did a much better job this time. I believe they were on the right track but the have it backward. The first and most important difference is the people involved in being evacuated followed by the local mayors, the governor and then, finally, FEMA and the President. That kind of co-ordination doesn't start at the top but at the "street level". A perfect analogy is a mishap like a derailment at UPS. The CEO, though he is the final authority is not the one that gets the ball rolling. It's the local manager, division manager and district manager who make things happen right away. If everyone waited for the CEO each time the disaster would be broadened beyond belief.
 

UPS Lifer

Well-Known Member
Cheryl, yes that is the same place! i have been there a couple of times to watch the rodeos the kids put on. They have made some improvements since then.

When it comes to fire - it is at high risk.
 

UPS Lifer

Well-Known Member
Traveler you are so right! Coordination of a disaster starts at the local level. This is off topic but I can't resist. It amazes me how Ray Nagin was able to spin all the problems onto the FEMA. He originally said that his city had things under control.

We were talking about the same topic yesterday. My wife thinks that there was probably something fishey going on with the funding of the dikes and the initial reaction of Nagin was to keep outsiders away. People might ask questions!!!

What a true politician...the ability to spin problems onto someone or something else!!
 

UPS Lifer

Well-Known Member
Now that the winds have weakened and have been neutralized by the on-shore flow the air is stagnant and we are being told to stay inside.
This is what is happening on Thursday in Corona.
The air is thick with smoke. It has an orange-gray tint and is hanging close to the surface the same way fog does. As the sun shines through, everything has an orange tint to it!

We are on the other side of the Cleveland National Forrest (Trabuco Cyn) and in some areas there the visibility is extremely poor.
 

Channahon

Well-Known Member
From UPSer's.com - this may be helpful information for others who may want to help out in some way to fellow UPSer's affected by the fires.


California Wildfires: Over 150 UPSers evacuated, one home lost

This story was last updated at 6 p.m., October 25.

Many UPSers and their families from the South Cal, Southeast Cal, and West L.A. districts have been affected by the California wildfires. No UPS people have been injured, however, more than 150 UPSers in these districts have been evacuated from their homes, with one reported home lost.
UPS helping out:
§ News and updates -- Evacuation center listings, fire information, road closures, and weather updates are available on UPSers.com for employees in the impacted districts.
§ Health advice -- Wildfire smoke inhalation precautions, tips, and FAQs, also are available on UPSers.com.
§ Counseling services -- Helping cope with stress and emotions as a result of the fire.
§ Financial assistance -- The UPS Foundation has made emergency interest-free loans available.

Want to help?
UPS has partnered with the United Way to establis
h the United Way Southern California Wildfires Recovery Fund – please access this link for additional information on how you can donate money to help all affected communities recover.
The South Cal, Southeast Cal, and West L.A. districts and the Pacific Region are pulling together and sharing resources to maintain service in the region everywhere that it is safe to continue operations and authorities allow access. UPS people in the area continue to deal with road closures, school closures, and air pollution caused by the wind-driven fires. Eighty management people have been sent to the three San Diego County UPS facilities from all three districts to assist with operations efforts.


UPS phone centers are maintaining a list of ZIP Codes where package pickup and delivery are delayed or temporarily suspended. This is information is available on UPS.com, or by calling 1-800-PICK-UPS.
Published : Oct 24, 2007 09:27 AM
Last Updated : Oct 26, 2007 04:05 PM
 

badpal

Well-Known Member
Last night our counter clerk was showing us her computer, it was showing all the zip codes that pickup and delivery were cancelled until further notice. Just wondered how may people and centers were affected. It mentioned something about San diego just wondered if operations shut down out there.
 

pt_oms

Active Member
We are still trying to catch up, monday all drivers were brought back to the center, Tuesday only about 20 routes went out for delivery out of 90, and they also only did about 30-40 stops each. Some areas are still closed, But was really gets on my nerve is the stuck up customer who demands to get her QVC package ASAP while thousands of people homes are being burned to the ground, Yeah that 5 dollar POS shirt really is important.
 
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