thank you ben for driving at 2 in the morning to come and make sure i'm a-okay. *giggle =)
____________________________________________
This morning I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock at ~ approximately 9:00 am. My first thought was, Oh shoot, I'm late for Physics. As I was scrambling to climb down from the loft bed, my roommate Steph announced that all classes were cancelled today due to the hazardous, choking air that was lurking overhead. Of course, I reacted with a Whoohoo! and hid under the blanket again for a good hour or so. I finally woke up for a second time, thinking, Wow, no classes today. How awesome is that?! After I lazily finished waking up, I made myself some sunny-side-ups in the kitchen, thinking to myself, I hate this weather. But hey, at least this beats going to school, right? Shortly after, I settled myself onto the couch with my other two roomates; together, we watched the news. I got one word for ya: SHOCKING! I, unfortunately, had not realized how dangerous the situation was, nor did I think that I would ever come close enough to be affected by the brushfires that were wildly spreading throughout San Diego County. The news showed the firemen hosing down a beautiful neighborhood in Mira Mesa. Mira Mesa...that name sounded oddly familiar. I went into my room and mapquested the distance from UCSD to Mira Mesa. There was only a 7.2 mile-gap between us and the fire-site with an estimation of ~ 13 minutes. Not only that, but it was told that parts of Mira Mesa was evacuated due to the reckless spreads of the fires. And to think, that's where my friends and I go to eat PHO ever so often. Oh boy. What a scary thought. To top it off, I was told that students at the other side of the campus were advise to pack their belongings in case of an emergency evacuation. =/ Thus, this fire situation has become a lot more deadly. Watching the firemen risking their lives to save lives, however, made my heart cry in hopes that nothing worse can come out of this. Hopefully, deaths will not be a concern, and that everyone is safe not only in San Diego but back home and everywhere else. You know, in case the fires has decided to wreak havoc elsewhere. BLARGH!
heres a piece of news from the San Diego County
Greg Gross
UNION-TRIBUNE BREAKING NEWS TEAM
12:24 p.m. October 22, 2007
SAN DIEGO – The Witch fire, pushed by strong Santa Ana winds, roared west Monday morning across northern San Diego County, forcing an estimated quarter-million people to flee their homes.
| |
It's one of seven fires raging across north and
“It's going to get worse. It's probably the worst fire this county has ever had, well worse than the Cedar fire,” said Sheriff Bill Kolender.
If those winds continue to propel the flames westward, fire officials warned, the
“I think there's a very good possibility it will reach the coast before it's finished,” said Bill Metcalf, chief of the North County Fire Protection District.
In all, the fires have killed one person and injured at least 20 others as of midday Monday, authorities said.
The
Officials at
UCSD also is handling 12 other fire-related patients:
four firefighters – three in critical condition and one in fair condition
eight civilians – four in critical condition, four in fair condition and one in good condition
The patients suffered burns and/or respiratory problems due to smoke inhalation.
Among the few pieces of good news was that the military was joining the firefighting effort....
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20071022-1224-bn22fire4.html
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has directed the California National Guard to assign 1,500 guardsmen to the firefighting efforts. The 1,500 guardsmen, including 200 troops currently patrolling the California/Mexico border, will be deployed at the direction of the Governor's Office of Emergency Services to areas where they can have the greatest impact.
"It is a tragic time for California. I saw the tremendous devastation caused by these fires first hand today and I want to commend all of the brave firefighters that have been battling the blazes around our state. They have done an extraordinary job," said Governor Schwarzenegger. "We have the best-trained, the best-equipped and the most experienced firefighters in the world and I am committed to making all of the state's resources available to them to get these fires under control. That is why I have declared a state of emergency and directed the National Guard to support the firefighters in Southern California.
"I urge everyone to follow the directions and evacuation orders issued by the emergency personnel."
