:: tue may 30 00 ::
12 midnight: local news reports temperatures of 2000 degrees in this fire. the heat is billowing debris and clouds up to 30,ooo feet, creating a true 'firestorm' ... complete with severe hail ... endangering firefighters. what was 1500 acres this morning is now 6500 acres.
this is the viveash fire from a normal lens (~50 mm) perspective, from the end of my driveway:
"pecosfire1"
and this is the fire using the widest of wide angles on my vidcam (yes, that's the road i live on. most everyone in santa fe lives on a dirt road. why put down asphalt and make us all miserable in the heat?):
"pecosfire2"
shot of helicopter. the angle of the bucket to the chopper gives you an idea how fast these guys are going. i only hope they've safety inspected those cables ...
"pecosfire3"
sorry if i'm boring everyone to death, but this is my life right now. fire and tragedy have no admirers ... that's as it should be.
due to involvement in the 'human drama' today, i won't be posting a great deal here.
we were awoken by the dulcet tones of helicopters pushing their limits carrying water to pecos.
fire update:
viveash progress. "... very difficult due to poor access to the fire, rugged steep terrain, very dry conditions, and windy afternoons with warm temperatures" ... understatement to the max, guys.
just had a discussion with a client; the helicopters are being contracted from a private firm. the specialized one is 28,000 a day, and the others that lift buckets are 16,000 a day. fuel not included. whew ...
2:30 PM update: everyone we care about is evacuated. what a relief. my landlord's housing two of his neighbors and their families.
people don't seem to understand the speed of this fire. three miles an hour isn't much? the fire's above 8000 feet in altitude (santa fe is 7500). the incline on the hills is severe. you'd be lucky to make 1/2 to a quarter mile an hour in most of the terrain, IF you're in good shape. firefighters can't get in to do anything about it, because they can't keep up, let alone stay ahead of the fire. and there's no way you're getting a bulldozer in there ... all they can do is build containment lines in areas they CAN access, and pray.
unlike los alamos, i can stand at my front door and see the billows of smoke. i'm almost directly upwind, so i can see not only the smoke, but the cloud formations built by the particulate matter. it is a moving sight.
time to start doing a rain dance ...