San Diego Fires – 3

The fires which started in San Diego County Sunday morning continue unabated in spite of huge efforts. Although there are plenty of stories of individual homes, and sometimes several, saved by firefighters, the truth is, until the Santa Ana winds stop, we humans are pretty much helpless. Even as the easterly winds ease, and the more normal onshore flow begins again, problems are far from over. In that shift, chaos is the norm.

Yesterday I was hugely frustrated by the lack of maps showing the fires. Today, that gap is being filled in. The San Diego Union, our largest daily and a paper I normally have no respect for what-so-ever, has gotten some good maps together. Their blog is showing how effective blogs can be in an emergency situation.

The North County Times has what looks like an even better map, but I can’t get it to enlarge. They do, however, have a news ticker and, in blog form, are trying to answer specific questions. Hard to tell how well that’s working, but it’s a great idea. Jim’s Blog still has the best selection of info I’ve found and Nate Ritter’s Twitter is a fascinating running commentary of many things.

As a native of the county, (yes, I was born in Oceanside because Fallbrook didn’t have a hospital at the time), it’s hard to know what to think, or how I feel. News coverage has taken on a sameness, with only details like exactly which streets are being evacuated changing. The news conferences, complete with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, give all sorts of data, some information and but it’s difficult to pick through.

Power transmission lines have been burned down which means electricity in the whole county is vulnerable.

It’s difficult to figure out how to volunteer to help. Money is the easiest way. The Red Cross is set up to collect dollars. But the desire to do hands on help is strong. Time will tell.

Write well and often,

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