Northern California Fires (San Francisco, Napa, South San Francisco: apartment, homes, live in)

[calif]

Is it smokey where you are?

In Mendocino county alone over 90 fires were started by lightening. In Clearlake a woman left her emergency brake on while driving and started 6 fires! Napa, Solanto County fire is only 40% contained.

[sonarrat]

San Bruno Mountain burned overnight, so yes, I am smelling it now at my workplace in Burlingame. Having been through a major apartment fire less than a year ago, it's a smell I didn't miss.

[calif]

Is San Bruno Mountain the one that is very near S. San Fran? Were any homes destroyed?

[sonarrat]

Yes, it's on the border between Brisbane and South San Francisco. No structures destroyed as far as I know, but all the news reports are behind. I live in the opposite corner of SSF on the San Bruno border, so fortunately I'm not even downwind of it.

[Roaddog]

I was in sac. a week ago and it was smokey, this morning i saw all the fires and couldn't believe it.

[calif]

How safe is it for us to be outside breathing all this in?

[california5]

My parents live outside Sac and it's really bad where they are.

How safe is it for us to be outside breathing all this in?

I don't think it safe. We live in S. California and when there is a lot of smoke in the air I keep the kids inside and run the AC. It isn't healthy to breath all that smoke in.

[rubyskye]

Originally Posted by calif

Is it smokey where you are?

In Mendocino county alone over 90 fires were started by lightening. In Clearlake a woman left her emergency brake on while driving and started 6 fires! Napa, Solanto County fire is only 40% contained.

Big Sur fire ..... 2000 acres burned already and as of this morning it was 0% contained. The lightening on Saturday started that one.
We've had quite a few fires in the Santa Cruz area in the last month.
The last one was started as 5 separate brush fires on HW1 in Watsonville, which, needless to say, spread quickly and burned at least 12 homes and animals were lost and people driving on the highway apparently saw a guy lighting those brush fires!!!!! This was on Friday when it was close to 100 (104 just a bit inland) degrees with humidity in the single digits.
We've gotten some smoke from the fire south of Monterey. It's been burning for awhile ... don't know the status of it now.
California burning, mid-west flooding, southeast drowning in their own sweat ..... i heard that for the first time in its history the Red Cross needs to borrow money. I imagine that's due to all the relief needed in the midwest.
And the summer has just begun.
Best to stay inside when the smoke is intense. I was up in Idaho last summer when over 500,000 acres burned ... right in the thick of it and i had to leave when i started coughing up ash.

[calif]

And then July 1st we are going to have to ration water statewide? So, we will be in a drought?

By the way coughing up ash sounds just awful! I'm keeping my kiddos inside today.

[DMenscha]

I spent my early life working for CDF (I'm never going to call it CALFire) and the smoke you are seeing, smelling and breathing shouldn't be a problem for those that aren't afflicted with respiratory conditions or small children <5 years. Most people's eyes are affected first, so if your eyes are burning it's probably best to get inside.

I have to chuckle at the coughing up ashes comment. We were working a fire one day and one of my crewmen came down the fireline to the engine and said " I need another hundred feet of......wait a second......(he chose that moment to throw up) inch and a half line. I feel much better now!" I tossed it up on the bank and on he went. We made a great stop and kept it under ten acres.

It's a nasty year out there, be careful with fire and if you live in the rural areas it's still not too late to get your 100' clearance.