California burning-again

[KarlC]

Looks like there is now another fire in So Ca .....

Sierra Fire: Fire breaks out near homes in Rialto area of San Bernardino County

https://www.10news.com/news/u-s-worl...nardino-county

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[benb]

Originally Posted by smead

With that said, a friend of mine in Paradise who lost his home did manage to throw his 3 road bikes in his truck before barreling down the hill. Not sure what his wife had to say about his decision about what to save / not save.

Not being in CA I don't have much perspective but if we were being told to evacuate and were told to go in our car I'd be throwing a bike for each family member onto the roof rack for sure. Not the fancy ones but something practical.

They'd come in real handy if we got trapped in a gridlock traffic jam with something like a fire bearing down on us. I'd rather ride out in smoke than walk or stay with the car.

[pdmtong]

Originally Posted by gasman

I grew up in California in the 60’s and the 70’s. The magnitude of these fires are hard to comprehend and it feels so much like this may be the new normal.

I think we are all going on and on here because it is hard to comprehend. While people have either direct experience or an understanding of tornadoes, hurricanes, even earthquakes there has been nothing like the magnitude and speed and frequency of these fires in memory.

The Oakland Hills fires was devastating in it's home destruction. These fires are bringing destruction, death and cover a massive area.

I read somewhere the acreage burned over the past few years is larger than rhode island. I'll have to check the fats but you get the idea.

[pdmtong]

Originally Posted by benb

Not being in CA I don't have much perspective but if we were being told to evacuate and were told to go in our car I'd be throwing a bike for each family member onto the roof rack for sure. Not the fancy ones but something practical.

you would think, but in the santa rosa fire many folks reported they literally had minutes - the fire was on the ridge bearing down on them. Lets say you were asleep, get woken up, someone says you have 15 minutes...this is the impossibility of it all

[GOTHBROOKS]

power company knows theres a red flag wind event with low humidity.
they can preemptively kill the power so that any downed lines wont spark in dry brush and ignite. but if the powers off and the brush still ignites, how do you get a warning phone call/text message off to ppl in these mtn communities with garbage cell reception when theres no wifi?

[drewski]

Originally Posted by paulh

There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor. Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/e...ophe-unfolded/

[m4rk540]

Originally Posted by Peter B

One of my personal filters is the recent memory of the local sheriff driving down my dirt road announcing evacuation time as the VLATs were flying laps overhead and the smoke billowed up the river canyon towards my meager 640 sf cabin home and I scrambled to toss a few memories into my truck before driving away. Miraculously the local firefighters got on top of it and most of use dodged a very big bullet.

There's something about a personal experiential connection that amplifies the future response. I know smead spent many thousands of hours renovating a dream home that is now likely up in flames along with those of his former neighbors outside Paradise.

Maybe not the most appropriate phrase, but by personal filter I hope you know that I meant that when living hundreds or even tens of miles from a fire and not being personally impacted other than air quality once the shock of the numbers and images is processed people begin to wrap their minds around the magnitude in their own ways. As in, "I live 200 miles away and my car is covered with ashes. Yikes, maybe I shouldn't ride today." I'm not suggesting that false-aest or joostx are trying to represent that with their posts; however, for me those images are very tangible. I don't give a crap about losing a few days of riding but it does shock me that my riding partners who live 70 miles from the Woolsey fire stayed in for a few days. These guys NEVER take a day off, personal tragedy or otherwise. Being aware that the fires impact these people in the most trivial way makes me more aware of the true impact. Makes me think about the lives, the property, the pets. Keeps me from forgetting. And it would be easy, as the San Gabriel Mountains are beautiful today.

https://xappprod.aqmd.gov/aqdetail/A...y?AreaNumber=9

[MattTuck]

Originally Posted by pdmtong

I read somewhere the acreage burned over the past few years is larger than rhode island. I'll have to check the fats but you get the idea.

I'm not sure if you've been to Rhode Island, but this statement is not that impressive.

That said, this is tragic, regardless of the size of the burned area.

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by GOTHBROOKS

power company knows theres a red flag wind event with low humidity.
they can preemptively kill the power so that any downed lines wont spark in dry brush and ignite. but if the powers off and the brush still ignites, how do you get a warning phone call/text message off to ppl in these mtn communities with garbage cell reception when theres no wifi?

PG&E has been doing that, but there's a limit to how often they can before it becomes an issue of "sorry, you don't get power this year". There are tree-trimming standards to help prevent lines getting touched, it's just not enough. As of now, PG&E is on the verge of bankruptcy - reportedly...

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[pdmtong]

Originally Posted by MattTuck

I'm not sure if you've been to Rhode Island, but this statement is not that impressive. That said, this is tragic, regardless of the size of the burned area.

found it.

https://fox40.com/2018/11/12/these-a...nia-wildfires/

rhode island...been through it on the Nor-easter once. thats the size claimed for this year alone. 1250+ miles2

[MikeD]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

As of now, PG&E is on the verge of bankruptcy - reportedly...

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

That remains to be seen https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sfc...m-13199141.php

Good article on the Paradise fire in terms of alerts, evacuation, and emergency plans https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/11/...warn-of-fires/

[FlashUNC]

Originally Posted by GOTHBROOKS

power company knows theres a red flag wind event with low humidity.
they can preemptively kill the power so that any downed lines wont spark in dry brush and ignite. but if the powers off and the brush still ignites, how do you get a warning phone call/text message off to ppl in these mtn communities with garbage cell reception when theres no wifi?

The other complexity after turning off the grid is before powering it back up, they have to inspect and clear the entire network before kicking the juice back in.

So the powering down is fast, but the powering up is a nightmare.

[Louis]

This won't help folks with existing homes, but are people starting to build houses that are less likely to burn to the ground?

I suppose that drives up the initial cost, but would presumably lower your insurance rates.

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by MikeD

That remains to be seen https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sfc...m-13199141.php

That article is a bit out of date, but it's still all speculation at this point:

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/pge...r-fire/542205/

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

The other complexity after turning off the grid is before powering it back up, they have to inspect and clear the entire network before kicking the juice back in.

So the powering down is fast, but the powering up is a nightmare.

True (...although not quite as bad as re-pressurizing the natural gas distribution network).

https://www.pge.com/en_US/safety/eme...fications.page

Smart-grid technology should help here, but the more rural you get, the less that's a thing...