Fires are burning in Southern California today, November 15th, 2008. You can smell the smoke clouds in the morning. Yuck.
A few days ago our first fire started in Montecito in Santa Barbara about a two-hour drive from Long Beach.
Then, last night a fire started in Sylmar which is about 60 minutes from Long Beach. I woke up this morning and watched the news on the Sylmar fire. There is a manufactured home park in Sylmar that lost over 500 homes today. This is an upscale park in the area.
Fire Reported in Riverside County
At 9:45 am there was a report of a fire in Corona near the 91 Freeway and the Green River exit. I called one of our clients that just purchased a home in Corona in August to make sure they were okay. They are. Thank God.
- The west bound side of the 91 Freeway in Corona is closed at Green River.
Orange County Fires
The Corona fires moved west and south into the Orange County cities of Yorba Linda and Anaheim Hills by the way of the Santa Ana River. The homes in Yorba Linda range in price for $600,000 and up. The same is true with Anaheim Hills. The Corona fire is now being called the Yorba Linda fire.
Personal Experience
I visited my parents home in Downey and could smell the fire smoke. When I left there and headed back to Long Beach, the cloud of smoke had traveled from Corona to the beach. The air is thick with ash and smoke. The ashes are falling here in Long Beach. The smell of the smoke effects me physically so I have stayed in doors since I arrived back in Long Beach.
How the Fire Jump Scotches
“Fire embers” are carried by the wind and ignite fires when they land on brush or homes. It was just reported that some of the embers have traveled as much as 3 miles from Corona to Yorba Linda…and landed on some multiple million-dollar homes in Yorba Linda. The direction of the fires are unpredictable.
What to do if the fire effects you
Pack a “to-go” box or carrying bag ahead of time. Fill it with insurance papers, bank statements, important documents along with your identification, credit cards, and cash. Perhaps a phone book of friends as well. Radio stations like KFWB News 98 AM and KNX 1070 AM are great stations for updates on these fires, traffic and news reports. All of the local television stations are covering the fire as well like KTLA 5, KNBC 4, KABC 7 and CBS 2.
