Smokey Skies Over Southern California

By Douglas V. Gibbs

I live in Murrieta, a city over just over one hundred thousand people, nestled up against Temecula at the southwest corner of Riverside County.  Los Angeles is northwest of our location and San Diego is about the same distance to the south.  To the west, over the hills, is Camp Pendleton, a huge Marine Corps Base that borders San Diego County, Orange County, and Riverside County.  Near the Fallbrook gate, not too far from where I live, a fire broke out today, adding to the smoke already in the air from Carlsbad and San Marcos.  The heat, and the smoke, made for a pretty miserable day, weather wise, and the Temecula Valley has been getting the worst of it, with San Clemente on the other side of the hills also being doused with a heavy blanket of smoke.

Here's a rundown of the fires, a total of more than 20,000 acres burned. . .

San Diego County:

San Marcos, Cocos Fire: 5 homes destroyed, Calvary Assembly Church in Escondido destroyed, 3,000 Acres Burned, 1,000 Firefighters Assigned, still active, 10% contained.

Bonsall, River Fire: 100 Acres, remained in Oceanside River riverbed.

Bonsall, Highway Fire: 380 Acres Burned.

Rancho Bernardo: 1,550 Acres Burned, 90% contained.

Camp Pendleton, San Mateo Fire (Combat Fire, Talega Fire) near Basilone Road: 800 Acres Burned, 0% contained.

Camp Pendleton, Las Pulgas: 15,000 Acres Burned, 5% contained.

Camp Pendleton, Tomahawk Fire at Fallbrook Naval Weapons Depot: 6,500 Acres Burned, 25% contained.

Freeway Fire, Fallbrook: 65 Acres Burned.

Carlsbad, Poinsettia Fire: 8 Homes, 22 unit Apartment Complex destroyed, 600 acres burned.  Evacuation order of 11,000 people lifted, 1 person found dead, 90% contained.

Escondido, Kit Carson Park, and Escondido Blvd.: Arson, small fire, extinguished quickly.  Youths caught setting fire, apprehended.

Lakeside, Aurora Fire: 17 Acres burned, 100% contained.  Homes threatened, none destroyed.


Santa Barbara County:

Miguelito Fire: 630 Acres Burned


Los Angeles County:

Over two dozen small brush fires reported, all contained quickly.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary