My View-The San Diego 2014 Wildfires

The San Diego Fires, May 2014

This last week was crazy. Insane crazy. Like the kind of week where you begin to wonder if there really is something to the "It's a full moon", theory.

Monday, I just couldn't get going. I actually had my husband pick up a pizza on his way home from work, which is very rare for a weekday.

Tuesday, I got a phone call that my mom had been in a car accident, and had been transported via ambulance to the hospital. I dropped everything, and my husband rushed home to take the kids so I could go to the hospital. Thank the Lord, she was later released. Although sore, scraped, and bruised, she was fine. 

Wednesday, the largest of some-10 fires in three days started. I've been in San Diego my entire life, and went through the 2003 Cedar Fire which nearly destroyed my grandparents built-by-hand dream home (their home was the only one standing for miles), cancelled my college classes for a full week, and created the most eerie dark-at-midday smoke haze you can imagine. I still can't smell smoke without being transported to those memories. The Cedar Fire remains the worst fire in California history, having burned over a quarter million acres. I also went through the 2007 Witch Creek Fire, which destroyed hundreds of homes in my childhood neighborhood.

So, naturally, when I heard a fire had started up, my first inclination was "Not again". I drove over to a neighborhood ridge near us to assess the danger and the fire's proximity. The strong Santa Ana winds are highly unpredictable, and since the fires were getting closer, I decided to pack a bag just in case. It was difficult to relax for the rest of the week, as Stinker's sporting events were canceled, roads were closed, and the smell of wildfire lingered day and night.

The fires are still not quite 100% contained, but thanks to the amazing bravery and nonstop work of the firefighters, the threat to local homes has been mostly diffused.

Since Wednesday, dozens of homes have been scorched, and the blackened hillside near our home remains a charcoaled reminder that anything can happen, and to not take for granted even one more day.

So much smoke in the air...my father-in-law captured the photo on the bottom right (used with permission) of a fast moving "fire tornado" caused by high winds.

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