You Don't Know How It Feels

Tom Petty - You Don't Know How It Feels

Drove into town today and did some grocery shopping. That horrible column of smoke behind the ridge is gone (woohoo). Signs in town and all along the hill saying "Thank You Firefighters". The Martin Fire in Bonnydoon is 75% contained per the CalFire page.

Fire

Bruce Springsteen - Fire. Latest on the Martin Fire in Bonnydoon from the CalFire site:

Location:	Bonny Doon and Martin Road, near Hwy 9
Acres Burned:	600 acres
Containment	25% containment - 600 acres
Structures Destroyed:	10 residences have been destroyed.
Evacuations:	Evacuations in effect for Ice Cream Grade Road, Martin Road, Moon Rock Road, Smith Grade and Pine Flat Road.
Cause:	Under Investigation
Total Fire Personnel:	889 (632 CAL FIRE)
Fire crews:	31 (19 CAL FIRE)
Engines:	61 (43 CAL FIRE)
Airtankers:	2
Helicopters:	6 (5 CAL FIRE)
Dozers:	8 (6 CAL FIRE)
Water tenders:	9
Costs to date:	$ 800,000

My neighbors known many people who live in the burn zone - 10 residences burned is horrible. The good news is fog is forming off the coast and bringing up the humidity - always a good thing.

A lot of stumps are going to be smoldering for quite some time. Gotta worry about the poison oak in the air - it releases its toxins into the smoke when burned. Token and I went out last night/early this morning and there was no smell of smoke at all. Skies were still a bit hazy causing the stars to twinkle and the moon had a very slight yellow tinge to it.

Smoke On The Water

Update 5:36pm: Not smelling smoke so much but it is still pretty hazy outside. Haven't gone into town today but have been checking the KSBW fire map which now shows the burn area, evacuated areas and road closures.



Deep Purple - Smoke On The Water (Live, 1973)

Smell of smoke in the air - am staying inside holed up where it is cooler and less smoky - imagine me avoiding smoke (laughing). Am not seeing the smoke column from the fire here - I noticed yesterday that it was clearly visible from town but not from my little protected valley where it is hidden by the redwoods on the south side of my cottage. I am smelling the fire which I was not doing last night. Stayed up most of the night monitoring and fell asleep this morning to the local news coverage. Slept fitfully but I did sleep :) Token is holed up next door with Goldie, Bailey is laying on the front step and then comes in to let me know that she is displeased.

Here is the CalFire Incident page for the Martin fire - started on Martin Road and is only near Highway 9 if looking at a zoomed out map:

Location: Bonny Doon and Martin Road, near Hwy 9
Acres Burned: 700 acres
Containment 5% containment - 700 acres
Threatened: 1,000 residences, 50 commercial properties and 50 outbuildings are still threatened.
Evacuations: Evacuations in effect for Ice Cream Grade Road, Martin Road, Moon Rock Road, Smith Grade and Pine Flat Road.
Cause: Under Investigation
Cooperating Agencies: Santa Cruz Sherrifs Office, CO, RDS, Office of Emergency Services, California Highway Patrol, Local Government Fire Departments, American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Pacific Gas & Electric
Total Fire Personnel: 719 (582 CAL FIRE)
Fire crews: 21 (17 CAL FIRE)
Engines: 69 (54 CAL FIRE)
Airtankers: 11
Helicopters: 7 (5 CAL FIRE)
Dozers: 9
Water tenders: 10

Fire On The Mountain

Marshal Tucker Band with Fire On The Mountain.

Yep, the mountain is on fire to the south and west of me. Here's the firemap (updated regularly) by the San Jose Mercury News. The closed roads are in red - Alba Road comes into Highway 9 about 3 miles south of me is why it looks worse than it is. The actual fire is in Bonnydoon and runs a risk of blowing onto the UCSC campus if the winds blow that way. I'm pretty safe here - the fire would have to blow through several towns (Ben Lomond, Brookdale and downtown Boulder Creek) before it gets to me. Click on the terrain option at the upper right to see the topography of the land between here (Boulder Creek - Highway 9 and Bear Creek Road)

I've got an evacuation plan and will head to Jen's with the critters for an emergency overnight but would head to Anne's from there if its a long term deal. All planning for the for worst and hoping for the best.

The showing this afternoon - 'not what she was looking for'. Oy.

Update: 03:53am - The Santa Cruz Sentinel has a good article about the fire with photos and video here.