The web site where I get the MODIS satellite thermal imagery has been up and down all morning, but I managed to capture it an hour or so ago (at right, click to enlarge). I can't tell for sure how old the satellite data is; it could be as much as 8 hours old. The red circles are the most recent hot spots; the orange the hot spots seen up to 24 hours ago, and the black hot spots more than 24 hours old.The green dot is where our home is, the yellow dot where my niece (who is going to USD) lives. The area I've circled in purple is the Barrett Canyon/Barrett Dam/Elena Peak area, the flank of the fire we are most concerned about for our own home's safety. The area I've circled in blue is the San Miguel Mountain area. For those of you not familiar with our area, this small mountain is a prominent peak near the town of Spring Valley, topped with a large number of antennas providing all kinds of services (including TV and radio) to much of San Diego County. This mountain burned over last night, apparently destroying all the antennas and associated electronics. Also on the flanks of that same mountain is a very large electrical substation, providing a substantial fraction of the power to San Diego County – this also burned over and was destroyed, according to news reports we watched this morning. The fire on this mountain is greatly reduced (again, according to news reports), both by Mother Nature being nice to us and because of the efforts of the firefighters (especially helicopter crews dropping water).
What is most dramatic about this data, of course, is the sheer scope of the fires hitting us here. Our local news stations are reporting well over 1,000 homes lost (500 in the Fallbrook area alone), and over 200,000 acres burned. The mayor of San Diego City has been saying since yesterday that this fire is worse than the Cedar Fire four years ago; for all of us who lived through that fire, such an assessment borders on the incredible. In one way, our current fires are far less awful than the Cedar fire: the loss of life and number of serious injuries is far lower. We are most thankful for that…
Really appreciate you taking the time to post info. I am out of state and trying to keep up on the Jamul area. Most of my relatives have evacuated to the coast, but one (very stubborn!) has decided to stay put on Lyons Valley Rd near the school. Your blog is the most helpful/accurate info we can get about the Lyons Valley/Skyline Truck Trail area. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the information.
ReplyDeleteI live in Kentucky and my only child lives in your area. She lives
on Hidden Ridge Rd. On your map that seems not too far from you.....
Thanks so much for the information.
ReplyDeleteOur only child lives in your area and we are so worried about her and her husband. She lives on Hidden Ridge Rd in Jamul.....