Oct 22, 2007 3:55pm

Fire From Above

The numbers, as you’ve seen elsewhere on our site, are staggering–a quarter of a million people evacuated from the fire zones in California.  And the fires flared up from almost nothing. The fires are large enough that they’re visible from NASA’s Aqua satellite.  The second of the two images here was shot at 2:50 p.m. PDT yesterday.  You can click on the pictures for a larger version, and HERE for a raw image of the bottom picture.  The smoke, blown westward by the Santa Ana winds, easily stretches more than a hundred miles out over the Pacific. NASA’s Earth Observatory website points out that Aqua’s sister satellite, called Terra, had passed over the area only three hours before, and taken the top image–showing only thin-looking smoke from several hot spots north of Los Angeles.  More HERE. If you haven’t seen it already, we have a slide show of what it’s like in the fire zones.  Click HERE to look.  And I hope you’ll keep the people there in your thoughts.

User Comments

Before the great housing boom, we used to have those 100-acre brush fires that would come within a few hundred feet of our home. Now they can’t get within a mile of us in any direction. A mixed blessing, given the congestion.

Posted by: Andy | October 22, 2007, 4:39 pm 4:39 pm

I want to see Oprah instead of the fires on the news.

Posted by: sandy | October 22, 2007, 6:39 pm 6:39 pm

I have no compassion for those who Decide to live in an area where they Know wildfires are frequent. Just like those who live in the shadows of volcanoes, or in severe earthquake zones, or hurricane zones(I live in one and welcome them, I love hurricanes), etc. These are a natural occurance in that area, for the most part. They’ve been going on for a long time. No one forces these people to live there. It’s a choice. Accept the responsibility. Neat pictures Ned.

Posted by: Lawrence | October 22, 2007, 8:12 pm 8:12 pm

Natural occurance? What kind of idiot are you? The only natural thing about arson is the hemp rope the arsonists need to be hung by. Get your facts straight. I live here and understand the rsiks associated with NATURAL disasters. I do sign on for mother natures natural adjustments. I did not sign on to have people burn my house down and kill my neighbors which include firefighters. Eartquakes are one thing, tornados are another. That’s gods hands at work. No passion. No brains either. Just another idiot with a computer……

Posted by: Scott Buchele | October 22, 2007, 8:30 pm 8:30 pm

I just want to know why people are so hostile?

Posted by: Justwondering | October 22, 2007, 8:42 pm 8:42 pm

I Wonder why people are so hostile as well. Its pretty funny that they would even say anything at all,and the points they try to make are ridiculous also! “DUH”. lol. People are amazing…

Posted by: Shawna | October 22, 2007, 8:51 pm 8:51 pm

I have 1 sister that just got evacuated in Escondido, and I have 2 nephews fighting these fires, please keep all fire fighters in your prayers!!

Posted by: Edie Kearns | October 22, 2007, 8:56 pm 8:56 pm

I pray for those who have been affected by these fires, I too live in So Cal but I am not yet affected. I just want to know what kind of person could not have compassion for those who are suffering? I am glad not to know a person like that, it disgusts me how self centered and evil people in this world can be. People who lack compassion and love for others are truly ugly through and through. Yes, I Mean You!

Posted by: D | October 22, 2007, 8:59 pm 8:59 pm

I’m in Lakeside, and lived in Alpine during the Cedar Fire. Interestingly, the 2007 Witch Fire is taking many of the same paths – Peutz Valley, Harbison Valley. My house is ok, I’ll see if my work in Poway is there. Good Luck. Take care

Posted by: Greg | October 22, 2007, 9:38 pm 9:38 pm

to Lawrence who feels that the military and their families who live in Rancho Bernardo are idiots to live in the path of disasters………..shame on you !!!
their are homeless families tonight, the same families who sent their husbands and wives off to fight for folks like you !!!

Posted by: Carol | October 22, 2007, 10:10 pm 10:10 pm

How Ironic that the conservationists in denying your right to clear your land of flammable brush has contributed to these fires, I wonder how much they have contributed to “Global Warming” as a result.

Posted by: Patriot2007 | October 22, 2007, 10:28 pm 10:28 pm

I dont mean to sound rude and I am appauled by the damage
but why do usa folks still build houses in wood?
the rest of the world uses brick
which is less suseptible to fire damage and holds up to hurricane winds

Posted by: steve hedley | October 22, 2007, 11:17 pm 11:17 pm

my comment above was not meant to be derogatory I feel deeply for those who have lost their homes and I salute the firefighters I am from the uk so please excuse what may seem a thoughtless post regarding building houses of wood in an area of high fire risk
there must be a reason for doing so and that is what i really wanted to ask
perhaps its cheaper to build a big house in wood rather than a smaller safer house in brick?

Posted by: steve hedley | October 22, 2007, 11:24 pm 11:24 pm

GLASS OF MILK
One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.
He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door.
Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water! . She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it so slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?”
“You don’t owe me anything,” she replied. “Mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness.”
He said … “Then I thank you from my heart.”
As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.
Many years later that same young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease.
Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes.
Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room.
Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once.
He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to her case.
After a long struggle, the battle was won.
Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She read these words …
“Paid in full with one glass of milk”
(Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.
Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: “Thank You,
God, that Your love has spread broad through human hearts and hands.”
There’s a saying which goes something like this: Bread cast on the waters comes back to you. The good deed you do today may benefit you or someone you love at the least expected time. If you never see the deed again at least you will have made the world a better place – And, after all, isn’t that what life is all about?
Now you have two choices.
1. You can send this page on and spread a positive message.
2. Or ignore it and pretend it never touched your heart.
The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which — To burn.

Posted by: steve hedley | October 22, 2007, 11:28 pm 11:28 pm

To Steve Hedley, brick houses in earthquake country are dangerous. I believe that wood construction flexes better with the earthquakes.

Posted by: kluaces | October 22, 2007, 11:38 pm 11:38 pm

To the brick house comment, look at the news – the CASTLE a well known landmark went up in flames!
The sparks got in through a ventilation grill and started up the fire from the inside…now are you going to say that there should be no wood furniture, paper or other flamable items “inside” the house too?
Fire is the one element that most closely immitates life.
It consumes oxygen. It leaves waste. It reproduces itself through it’s sparks. Devoid of oxygen it dies. It can appear spontaneously if the conditions are right.
Prevention could have helped, clearing away the underbrush – the leaves and kindling could have helped – having helicopters drench areas with water before the fire may have helped.
But this is just another symptom of a much larger problem.
So far we’re just taking an asprin for the pain, we haven’t really started to treat the cancer.
Too many mouths, and not enough ears, makes it hard for the hands to get anything done. And some leaders & profit mongers seem to be sitting on the hands that could help.

Posted by: Starr | October 23, 2007, 12:19 am 12:19 am

California homes are mostly built with wood to withstand earthquakes. Flying bricks are also very dangerous. Even with a brick home, it will not withstand a raging wildfire once the roof or other parts of the house catch fire.

Posted by: nomad | October 23, 2007, 12:31 am 12:31 am

To Steve Hedley: Houses are made of wood in SoCal because they are more resistant to earthquakes than bricks.

Posted by: wendy Garcia | October 23, 2007, 12:33 am 12:33 am

Houses are built of wood because most of California is earthquake country. Wood framing will withstand moderate earthquakes, whereas brick walls will not, unless they are specially built for that purpose with extensive reinforcing steel. That type of construction is not practical in California.

Posted by: balticbeau | October 23, 2007, 12:37 am 12:37 am

For the heartless comments on top..I am a resident that lives less than 2 miles from the current fire. I didn’t chose a place close to the fire line, but it is still finding its way to our area. I have 2 young children, both of whom are scared that they are going to lose everything they own….Do you honestly believe that I would purposely choose to do this to my children? This was NOT a natural disaster, this was the work of some idiot that thought it would be fun to play with fire. Many people are suffering due to the stupid actions of some pin-head right now.
I would never wish this kind of fear, or the kind of loss so many have had endured so far on anyone…Not even heartless, self-centered, narrow minded people as yourself.
For those of you that have a heart, thank you for keeping those that have lost so much in your thoughts. It’s people like you that will one day make this world a much better place.

Posted by: Sandra | October 23, 2007, 1:59 am 1:59 am

Yo..Let’s all pray for these people1!!

Posted by: OBee | October 23, 2007, 3:42 am 3:42 am

yea right..pray that these fires wont exacerbate global warming!!! Goodness

Posted by: Albert Gourr | October 23, 2007, 3:44 am 3:44 am

I am appalled at the fires, but ashamed that people are responding like these last comments. Frankly, it is sickening.

Posted by: Anne | October 23, 2007, 5:25 am 5:25 am

Um,my facts are right. Look into your natural history. Wildfires are not 100% man-made. Especially in an area where they seem to occur yearly. Again, no compasion. I also wonder about the hostilities. I’m also not another idiot with a computer. Just an individual who frequents this place, if you read more often you’d see that. I also have a RIGHT to voice my opinion, I served in the military to fight for that right.

Posted by: Lawrence | October 23, 2007, 8:46 am 8:46 am

you’re right about having the right to express your opinion. I’m always amazed at the number of people who will challenge that right. You can usually silence them by asking them how much time they have in the military defending their country.

Posted by: Andy | October 23, 2007, 11:32 am 11:32 am

Not having compassion for another human in need and suffering is what is wrong with our country today. Whether these disasters are the work of god or man, people are suffering; losing everything they have. How can anyone say they deserve this? My prayers go to each one of them, and the firefighters trying to save their homes. And despite her comments, when hurricanes hit ‘Sandy’s’ home I will pray for her too.

Posted by: De | October 23, 2007, 12:16 pm 12:16 pm

Ha, yea I did didn’t I. I’m sure some of people wished my home was in the fire’s path too. I agree, many people like to challange the right to free speach, especially when your view is in conflict with theirs. I spent about 3 years in the military to defend everyone’s right to free speach and many other rights outlined in our constitution. Oh well, I and thousands of other servicemen and women served, fought, and died to give them that right. Let them speak.

Posted by: Lawrence | October 23, 2007, 12:21 pm 12:21 pm

Thanks for the info guys
truly appreciated
I hope the fires are controlled very soon and everyone is safe

Posted by: steve hedley | October 23, 2007, 1:41 pm 1:41 pm

If there is some place in the world that is totally safe–no fires, floods, earthquakes, storms, tornadoes, volcanos, hurricanes, tsunamis, drought, and all the horrible things people do to each other, please let me know where it is. Otherwise, pretend like you’re a decent human being and have a little compassion for the people who stand to lose their homes, jobs, and possibly even their lives.

Posted by: morgensweg | October 23, 2007, 7:12 pm 7:12 pm

It looks like a couple of these fires were man-made:
“At least one of the fires, in Orange County, is believed to have been set. And a blaze threatening the homes of the rich and famous in Malibu might have been caused by downed power lines, authorities said.
Another blaze was started by a car fire. Flying embers started new fires at every turn. One of the San Diego fires is burning so fast that authorities do not yet have an accurate count of how many homes have been destroyed.”
Yes, this does happen a lot in California but I don’t think to this extent. I think a lot of the people who were evacuated normally don’t even have to worry about this coming so close to their homes.
The person who said that there is no place in the world that is completely safe is correct. There are earthquakes, tornados, huge blizzards, fires, volcanos, tsunamis, etc. Where can one go to get away from the dangers of the world? Anywhere you go, you are subjecting yourself to some kind of danger, man-made or natural. Anyone who does not have compassion for the thousands who have lost loved ones and irreplaceable items, does not deserve compassion when they have lost something dear themselves. But I hope someone shows them compassion anyway and shows them how important it is for us humans to stick together during the hard times.

Posted by: Katie | October 24, 2007, 10:47 am 10:47 am

Did you fight because you cared about the people of your country and wanted them to be free and happy? Or did you fight because you wanted to be important and so you could flash it around whenever someone didn’t agree with you?
I would think a veteran would have more consideration for his fellow man than you have shown.

Posted by: Katie | October 24, 2007, 10:51 am 10:51 am

Lawrence has every right to voice his opinion, it is every person’s right, whether they served their country or not. Yes, people accept that they live in an area that can be subject to wildfires, primarily by choice, just as those who live in other areas with other weather related issues do so by choice. That does not however mean that anyone who suffers the losses that these people in Southern California are experiencing do not deserve our compassion and our support. It’s what humanity is about.

Posted by: Shirley | October 24, 2007, 12:22 pm 12:22 pm

I live close to the areas of the fires and know how bad they are. People who live here have their own reasons for doing so just as people in other areas have their reasons. For someone to say that they deserve to be burned out is just plain idiotic, no one deserves to have their house burnt down by an arsonist.

Posted by: BTL musings | October 24, 2007, 11:17 pm 11:17 pm

We are praying for the families in calf. that have lost there homes.May GOD be with you all.

Posted by: carrie | October 31, 2007, 8:06 pm 8:06 pm

I can see that this post is not moderated. Shame on you ABC.

Posted by: JohnDoe | November 1, 2007, 11:49 am 11:49 am

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