As background, Stan lives in Crestline, California, up the mountain from Lake Arrowhead, a center of one of the big fires in San Bernadino/L.A.On Monday night he had packed up his car in case of an evacuation notice, though the fire was still about two air miles away. On Tuesday, four years to the day, they read the official notice to evacuate via http://www.rimoftheworld.net/ to evacuate. By 11 pm he'd packed up the family, cat and two dogs and headed to his mom's (adoptive) place in La Verne. It was very windy, two semi's were overturned on the road, but there was almost no traffic.
He'd spotted boats, trailers, and classic cars (like a '57 Chevy) parked in Goodwin's (the Crestline supermarket) parking lot. He figures they were from Dart Canyon, which was in the path of the fire. Where his house is situated in in a protected spot where he could see the stars and clear sky overhead, but heavy smoke up-mountain. He'd heard that Twin Peaks, a nearby town, had embers the size of milk cartons flying in. Twin Peaks is pretty much gone.
It was four years to the day since he had to evacuate from the last big fire. His daughter Sarah was just nine days old. He said the situation wasn't as bad as that time, believe it or not, at least in Crestline, which historically hasn't yet burned because of wildfires.
He said it looked like Apolocypse Now at Lake Gregory, which is in the town of Crestline, with helicopters thwop thwopping in lines scooping up water to dump on the fire. The level of the lake was already low, but now is noticeably lower than it was when I was there a few days ago.
He said by Monday as he was trying to call me on Skype he heard a frantic knocking at his door. It was his neighbor across the street who said "I'm 80 years old, too old to leave now, but my daughter's freaking out. Can you come over and help?"
They have about 15 dogs and cats. He saw eight cats in boxes lined up by their car. He told them he didn't think they had to leave just yet, which calmed them down a bit. They have three cars that barely run (one had a broken water pump and the engine was spewing oil) and a trailer parked there that had plastic for a door. I think they do have one car at least that can get them out of there.
This time Stan says he's better prepared and shut off the water and all his electronic stuff, like computers, TV, phone. Last time they were gone for 10 days and the refrigerator was a mess, with melted ice-cream leaking down the back.
He'd been given a pair of surgical industrial-fit gloves, a bag and a mask which he donned to clean it up. The electricity was still on as of last night, so he's hoping it won't be as much of a mess.He emptied the garbage and the food out of the dog run, so mice won't get in.
He says in Crestline, because it's not as upscale, people don't plant plants that don't naturally go there or water them particularly, like they do in San Diego, i.e., mesquite and chapperal that burn nicely, and that the infrastructure is better, compared to San Diego.
He said it is raining ash in La Verne, but otherwise it's fine. He plans to go in to work at Redlands on Thursday. Kristen teaches grade six in the Highland area, where another fire has started. They've closed the schools in San Bernadino, so she has a few days off.
Sarah packed her new Barbie suitcase with five pairs of socks, underpants, three shirts and pants, and a few toys, so she's set.
I'm putting in a few pics I took when I was there of Sarah's birthday and Stan working on his Ural (russian-made cherry red motorcycle with sidecar) that he's left up there along with a new scooter.
I got to Crestline in time to celebrate Stan's wife Kristen's and daughter Sarah's birthdays, which was really great. We went out to Baker's restaurant, a favorite of his mom, Vera's, to eat lunch and then came back to her house for cake.
Me, I'm in North Platte, Nebraska, about to head out to the other side past Lincoln, on my way to visit another Darrow expert. I'll keep you posted.
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