Nov. 15 - Fires in the OC

This is really devastating! I'm watching KNBC and have been most of the the afternoon. Most of the sky is full of dust, debris, and smoke, and I'm at least 15 miles from any fire. It smells of burned wood and is very smokey, outside.

Homes along the 91 freeway east of the 55 have been destroyed by fire. These aren't even brush fires - they are homes on fire! I watched an entire apartment complex of 250 units go up in flames over the last 1.5 hours. It was along the 91 freeway! They first called it the Corona Fire, and then the Yorba Linda Fire. It then spread to Brea and then to Anaheim Hills. It's all the same fire, sparked by burning embers.

When my family moved to a new home (new to us) in Gardena, in July, 1958, the Signal Hill fire was burning. I remember that the sky way off in the distance was black. It smelled like it does today, burning wood. Today, in Signal Hill, many don't remember that there was a fire there, and there are many homes up there today. That would be devastating but it could happen again! The fires today are fast-moving and are unpredictable.

But when we see fire in residential communities along a freeway, it really hits close to home. What's to stop it ? The news just said that a home 3 miles away from the closest fire just went up in a blaze. It's windy outside and those burning embers travel far. My car is full of ash.

The news reporter just said that someone opened their garage door, got into their car and started it up and the car went up in a blaze.

Last night, there was a fire that started in Sylmar and the San Fernando Valley. It went through a whole mobile home complex, with hundreds of homes going up in flames.

I am praying for the safety of the firefighters, for the people who live in those fire-torn areas, and all those who have lost their homes. It is just a horrid picture of devastation.