Firestorm 2007? (San Diego: condo, home, neighborhoods)

[Imperial1904]

Originally Posted by bloom

But what about the fire of 1978 that swept up Texas St. into the inner city, following a midair plane collision over ~Mission Valley ??

You mean North Park?

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Sampaguita

But it started in Mission Valley, yes? That's just up the road from Texas St.

I think Sassberto might be referring to the unlikely scenario of the current fires spreading into the innercities/mid-city areas because of the topography here compared to the topography of the effected areas.

Most of our neighbors are of the same opinion; everyone's prepared to move out but don't feel it will happen just because of where we're situated.

Yes, that is exactly what I am referring to. Look at the topographies involved. The burned areas are adjacent to open spaces or hill country with plenty of fuel. The fires are able to burn contiguously as a result. That is not the scenario in the city itself. There is a lot of concrete and roads to get past to burn houses. That is not the case in the Lake Hodges area or Potrero.

So yes, barring an unrelated event (i.e. plane crash, or fire started in a canyon) you will not see rural-originated wildfire make incursions into the heavily populated city areas without some major conditions (i.e. multiple days of heavy winds).

[Imperial1904]

The news media is saying that in SD County, the evacuation totals almost 1 million people. That's just crazy.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Imperial1904

The news media is saying that in SD County, the evacuation totals almost 1 million people. That's just crazy.

That information is grossly inaccurate.
Unforgiving fires char Southern California, half a million flee - CNN.com

[Imperial1904]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

That information is grossly inaccurate.
Unforgiving fires char Southern California, half a million flee - CNN.com

LOL How quickly they changed the numbers. They were saying because the average household has 2.6 residents, it turned out to be almost 1 million.

Even half a million is alot.

[orionid]

The last number I heard was that 513,000 San Diego County residents have been evacuated ... the >1M number refers to all of Southern California.

[orionid]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

These guys are coming off like complete pros compared to the LA govt during Katrina. Time will tell, but at least thus far, I think the combination of the reverse 911 system, the wide-ranging mandatory evacuations, and the frequent and constant communication to the press will be seen as a model for Emergency Management going forward.

No doubt, but let's keep in mind that Katrina caused deep water on the ground, nearly everywhere, and many, many deaths. Although lots of routes have been closed, cars still roll and people can still move around; this is one of the reasons there has been so much help from volunteers. If a volunteer wanted to help during Katrina, I'm not sure you could even get to their stadium, but you can drive to Qualcomm stadium and help directly.

San Diego and California has been GREAT with it's response (the reverse 911 system has been invaluable), but I'm just pointing out that it's not exactly apple-to-apples to compare the two tragedies.

[OREGONRAIN]

Originally Posted by bloom

But what about the fire of 1978 that swept up Texas St. into the inner city, following a midair plane collision over ~Mission Valley ??

That was Sept 25, 1978 a PSA 727 jetliner crashed into north Park after a midair with a small plane. I lived on Arizona St at the time. The fire was basically contained to several blocks, as the plane crashed like a arrow and did not belly flop thru the neighborhoods. That actually saved many more streets and homes from becoming an inferno. The fire was contained very fast. I could not get home that day because of all the wreckage and bodies were everywhere. The pilot was trying to crash on the freeway but didn't make it, or so we were told. Now the area is all condos and apts, you would never know what happened there unless someone told you, which I imagine many find out after they move there. I have seen these fires burn in San Diego itself before, I remember being in Mission Valley and watching all the homes along the hillsides in Normal Heights going up in flames in the 80's. These fires can make it into the city itself but I feel that will not happen and is unlikely at least at this time.

[jksouthbay88]

Well some new news.This pisses me off.A lot of the DTWN SD hotels are full,some charging for evacuated persons,some not.But this upsets me.There is supposed to be a convention DTWN soon and those people who evacuated are being told to give up there rooms for convention guest!!!This is what I HATE about San Diego.Everyone is just trying to make a buck off of someone!It's so typical.Why are you going to have a convention when about a Million or more people are affected by these fires?Why are places like the Zoo,Sea World,Belmont Park,planning to open on either WED or Thursday?And why is the NFL trying to make the Boltz play this Sunday?I just don't get it.I really don't.

[kettlepot]

I'll have to disagree with you on this point JK. Putting on a convention takes a LOT of planning. There is shipping in the displays, scheduling thousands of airplane reservations, arranging for the jobs of attendees to be covered by someone else back home. The disruptions from canceling the convention will radiate outward in tremendous waves. In 2002 the NFL had to reimburse an Auto Dealers convention hundreds of millions of dollars to make way for the Superbowl because it had to be postponed one week.

And of course there are the livelihoods of the people in San Diego who are depending on the conventioneers coming: The hoteliers, restauranteurs, and the people who are working at the tourist attractions. San Diego NEEDS to get back to normalcy as quickly as possible and not develop a reputation as a place that has trouble getting back to work after a disaster. A good reputation is a valuable asset.

As for the evacuees in hotels, well, if they weren't burned out, they will only be inconvenienced for a day or two as they will be going home soon. Some neighborhoods are already being reopened. For those that were burned out, maybe they can rent some of those spec properties that are now sitting on the market going begging. Also, there are probably hotels further away from the convention center that may have rooms available that people in their rush to find a place to stay hadn't considered. They may not be high class joints, but I suspect there are more rooms available out there than people think.

Which segues into something that I've been wondering. According to online sources there are about 7k houses and condos for sale in San Diego. I'm not sure if that 7k covers the entire county or not. But I've been wondering, will the loss of 1 to 2 thousand homes be enough to stop the decline in housing prices. Hard to say as the displaced people will mostly enter the rental market as they rebuild their homes. But maybe it will firm up the price floor a little bit.