• Welcome to OGBoards 10.0, keep in mind that we will be making LOTS of changes to smooth out the experience here and make it as close as possible functionally to the old software, but feel free to drop suggestions or requests in the Tech Support subforum!

California fires

Evacuation lifted for most of Lilac fire. For 70 mph gusts, low humidity, and an area that has a ton of brush, 4,100 acres is a herculean effort. Heard they had a ton of resources and up to 1400 firefighters on it to prevent worse damage. It almost got to Vista/Oceanside which are high population areas, but they stopped it before that. ~150 structures, 46 horses, 3 burn victims (but no deaths?) is what I've read.

The only evacuations still in place are where it started. And it's being referred to as a "crime scene." Sounds like arson?

This fire was relatively small to what it could have been. Lilac fire is bottom right. Compare to the Thomas Fire north of Ventura, top left 230,000 acres. I think it's one of the five largest in the state. Many of the Cal Fire personnel are going straight from Lilac to Thomas fire.

2ns562u.jpg
 
Last edited:
Yeah seems like they really jumped on the Lilac fire to get it knocked down before it could get really bad. Maybe they were helped by the terrain over there, not sure. if some asshole intentionally sets fires (esp. in California right now, but really at anytime) they should spend a long, long time in prison.
 
Deacon923 said:
Yeah seems like they really jumped on the Lilac fire to get it knocked down before it could get really bad. Maybe they were helped by the terrain over there, not sure. if some asshole intentionally sets fires (esp. in California right now, but really at anytime) they should spend a long, long time in prison.
Click to expand...

Very possible. It started West of I15, and road down between highway 76 and West Lilac Road till it got to another major road way, went a little further, then stopped. I think what helped is the firefighters not having to worry about a lot of houses, and could set up control lines for it's expected path to slow it down, plus the roads keeping it from jumping wherever it wanted. That Thomas fire is up in rolling hills with very little wide roadways and lots of dry brush. As bad a scenario as you can imagine.
 
At the middle school I attended after they announced the school needed to be evacuated, parents were pulling up to pick up kids with flames surrounding the school. I could not imagine.
 
Deacon923 said:
Yeah seems like they really jumped on the Lilac fire to get it knocked down before it could get really bad. Maybe they were helped by the terrain over there, not sure. if some asshole intentionally sets fires (esp. in California right now, but really at anytime) they should spend a long, long time in prison.
Click to expand...

There are some really sick people out there who get pleasure out of events like this, and I agree, lock them up for a long long time. In recent years, campers who didn't properly dispose of ashes etc have started to be prosecuted. While I'm my sympathetic to them, they're also culpable for their actions.

SDeacz said:
Very possible. It started West of I15, and road down between highway 76 and West Lilac Road till it got to another major road way, went a little further, then stopped. I think what helped is the firefighters not having to worry about a lot of houses, and could set up control lines for it's expected path to slow it down, plus the roads keeping it from jumping wherever it wanted. That Thomas fire is up in rolling hills with very little wide roadways and lots of dry brush. As bad a scenario as you can imagine.
Click to expand...

This is a very important point. By nature, wildland firefighting is a very fluid and mobile task, whereas protecting a structure involves the personnel and apparatus sitting at the location waiting for the fire to arrive. Two very contrasting styles of firefighting.
 
tsywake said:
There are some really sick people out there who get pleasure out of events like this, and I agree, lock them up for a long long time. In recent years, campers who didn't properly dispose of ashes etc have started to be prosecuted. While I'm my sympathetic to them, they're also culpable for their actions.



This is a very important point. By nature, wildland firefighting is a very fluid and mobile task, whereas protecting a structure involves the personnel and apparatus sitting at the location waiting for the fire to arrive. Two very contrasting styles of firefighting.
Click to expand...

In big fires like that, and in rural areas, do they make an attempt to save every home? I know sometimes the fire may be moving too quickly to do that. I've heard reports of streets not having any fire fighters present until homes were fully engulfed, and others where there were 2-3 fire trucks and 15+ firefighters spraying water on houses, and around the house to keep the fire away. It may be a home by home bases, but some neighbors are not understanding the process. Do they try to save more expensive structures?
 
SDeacz said:
In big fires like that, and in rural areas, do they make an attempt to save every home? I know sometimes the fire may be moving too quickly to do that. I've heard reports of streets not having any fire fighters present until homes were fully engulfed, and others where there were 2-3 fire trucks and 15+ firefighters spraying water on houses, and around the house to keep the fire away. It may be a home by home bases, but some neighbors are not understanding the process. Do they try to save more expensive structures?
Click to expand...

That actually never factors into the equation. Truthfully, your multi-million dollar home is more likely to have adequate insurance to rebuild, whereas smaller homes may not. Certainly hospitals, museums (ie Getty), and the like are higher priority saves; but they too are at times at the mercy of their location and current conditions. The command center for these fires are massive operations with tons of information coming in 24/7 throughout the incident. Current and anticipated wind speed, direction, and humidity; updated fire location and population density, and terrain maps are constantly being analyzed by staff and relayed to command. They use this information to triage which areas need more resources in 3 priority areas: Life Safety, Incident Stabilization, and Property Conservation. Saving those trapped or in immediate danger from the fire is priority one, followed by deploying resources in the best possible locations to stop the overall progression of the fire. As much as it sucks, sometimes it means giving up on some areas in order to save others. It's certainly not an enviable position to have to make that call.
 
tsywake said:
That actually never factors into the equation. Truthfully, your multi-million dollar home is more likely to have adequate insurance to rebuild, whereas smaller homes may not. Certainly hospitals, museums (ie Getty), and the like are higher priority saves; but they too are at times at the mercy of their location and current conditions. The command center for these fires are massive operations with tons of information coming in 24/7 throughout the incident. Current and anticipated wind speed, direction, and humidity; updated fire location and population density, and terrain maps are constantly being analyzed by staff and relayed to command. They use this information to triage which areas need more resources in 3 priority areas: Life Safety, Incident Stabilization, and Property Conservation. Saving those trapped or in immediate danger from the fire is priority one, followed by deploying resources in the best possible locations to stop the overall progression of the fire. As much as it sucks, sometimes it means giving up on some areas in order to save others. It's certainly not an enviable position to have to make that call.
Click to expand...

Good info, thank you.

I think some of the questions regarding value of the house were because approximately half of the houses lost were mobile homes. However, that is where the fire started, and they likely weren't on scene right away. They said a lot of resources were "centrally" positioned in Riverside, California, which could have taken them 45 minutes to get there. Coupled with the fact they were tightly packed and the fire was moving toward a school in session, I'm sure the priority was getting people out of the way, and the kids off the campus.
 
Last edited:
tsy, I'm assuming you are a fireman? If so, thank you for your service. What some of those guys are going through in southern California is just brutal right now. And I can't imagine the fear that their families live with.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top