12 replies to this topic

[Pappy]

Does anyone know how our friends in LA are doing? I sent an email to Bryan Warmack this morning but is the middle of the night out there and I haven't heard back.

[Cheater]

Looks really bad out there. Hope everyone is OK.

[Dave Crevie]

Too close to people. Winds  might recede a bit today, but still very dangerous. An old family friend had a very nice house near there, it burned to the ground about 20 years ago when one of these Santa Ana wind fires went wild. They built a new house closer to Santa Barbara. The house that got built on their old property burned again. Beautiful area, but too much risk.

[Bryan Warmack]

Does anyone know how our friends in LA are doing? I sent an email to Bryan Warmack this morning but is the middle of the night out there and I haven't heard back.

 

Butch,

 

Other than a lot of mess with the high winds we're pretty much OK here in Orange County. Most of the bad fires are on the coast in very scenic areas of North Los Angeles.

 

Thanks for the concern!

[Dave Crevie]

This was live at 11:00a (9:00a PDT);

 

https://youtu.be/-f1...pCxXVyIRFfIkBDW

 

Two reported dead. Looks like the middle of the night. My friend's old house would be near the center of the Palisades, just off PCH.

 

Hope all the Slotbloggers are safe!

[Roy Lievanos]

As Brian said, here in Orange County we are dealing with wind.

 

Fires in Pacific Palisades area are having to deal with extremely high winds. 

I woke up to a branch that landed on my truck. I can only imagine the winds in they are dealing with. 

 

[eshorer]

I'm a few miles from downtown LA, 15-25 miles from the big fires, but still had strong winds making a mess of things all night, and putting ash on our cars in the morning. Horrible air quality. We've packed important things in case we get an evacuation notice. A few friends closer to the fires have already evacuated. We're ready to bolt, if need be.

 

Eddie

[Phil Hackett]

As I live much closer to the Palisades fire than most SoCal members of Slotblog, I can say it's scary, freakin' out of control. So many, on both sides, are trying to make this fire a political issue when this should be a united effort and holding blame is a losing strategy. These people are A$$holes.

 

There are postings on the internet about Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass (LA Mayor) being responsible for this. Somehow, many of those posting have no idea of the terrain and vegetation of Southern California and think you can just rake up and cut down the vegetation to lower the fuel load, so they blame the people in power. These fires have occurred almost every year I have lived in SoCal, the big difference is the intensity of the winds (It was howling at my home... this rarely happens) and the lack of humidity (about 10%). Yes, "they" could have planned better but that's hindsight.

 

My house and business are safe. If either burns resulting from these fires it will be because of a Biblical Apocalyptical event.

 

A couple of pictures:

 

This picture was taken 1/7/24 about 6 PM from the Playa Del Rey bluffs... about eight miles from the fire. For scale, the large building just to the right of the fire is about 1-1/2 miles from this bluff.

 

 

This was this morning. The sun was red/orange from all the smoke... it's much more intense than the picture shows... I live about 12 miles from the Palisades fire. The Pasadena/Altadena fire is about 20 miles away and the entire sky is this red/orange tinge.

 

[Dave Crevie]

Well, good news that none of our friends have suffered any catastrophic harm. You are right, Phil, that this happens every year. The topography takes the Santa Anas, and by venturi effect, turns them into hurricane force winds, that fan the smallest brush fires into blast furnaces.

 

So my question is, why do people continue to build in these dangerous areas? We see the same thing in the Midwest. People build within feet of a river, and are surprised when, after a downpour, they are flooded out. Then they rebuild in the exact same spot.  

 

Politicians will always blame each other for calamities. That's how they get re-elected. By mudslinging.  

[Larry Labounty]

You have to wonder if there are any real leaders out there???

[Cheater]

Guys, 

 

I am certain I am as disgusted as you are, but let's not get into the politics of the inferno here please.

[Phil Hackett]

Why people live in places that have hazards is partly denial. "It can't happen to me." Besides fires, this entire area is a earthquake zone... Sonic sits, literally, on top of an earthquake fault that's potentially a +6.0 (Newport-Inglewood fault... look it up) Ritcher scale event but it doesn't worry me because I really can't control whether a disaster happens or not.

 

The hills and canyons of Southern California are some of the most desirable places to live. Those areas tend to be very private, quiet, and have fantastic views. Paciifc Palisades is immediately adjacent to the ocean so the weather has a coastal climate: mild year around.

 

James Woods was just on CNN talking about how a neighbor had not cut down the brush on his property. Woods lost his house partly because that brush caught fire. The LAFD and the LACFD make inspections in those areas and can demand brush clearing on private property. Most people who live in those hills and canyons are very aware and keep things cut down...

[Phil Hackett]

I am certain I am as disgusted as you are, but let's not get into the politics of the inferno here please.

 

Agreed. I have seen too many ignorant posts on the internet, even by "experts." They're just making themselves look foolish.