More fire news

KPBS is such a godsend!!! I've been listening to their live feed for the past 4 hours or thereabouts, and they're a wonderful source of news going on in San Diego.

I also heard from my sister-in-law. She shared some very interesting data with me:

• The burned areas of San Diego are now the equivalent to the area of the entire island of Oahu.
• Half a million people have been displaced. There are three million people in San Diego.
• This is FEMA's second-largest disaster; Katrina was the largest.

She reports that the Rancho San Diego area, where she used to live, has been evacuated. She graduated from Valhalla High School in El Cajon. The evacuation orders for Eastern Chula Vista have been lifted. We have friends who live in those areas of Chula Vista, and thankfully, there have been no reports of houses lost in the Eastlake area. She also reports that most of the county is on fire. (I'm not sure about that, but having a look at the very useful maps on KFMB Channel 8's website has been most illuminating.)

Hopefully the winds will shift soon. As long as the Santa Ana winds are still blowing from East to West, the fire problems will still persist and not be alleviated.

Prayers to all affected by the fires.

To friends and family in San Diego

My goodness - I'm just having a look at photos and videos from Channels 6, 8, 10, and 39's websites. Those wildfires are more extensive than I thought - if they're calling for evacuations as far west as Torrey Pines and Del Mar ... !!! ...

And for those of you in Chula Vista, I hope things are okay for you down there. I know Chula Vista's had a huge building boom since I left (I don't even recognize it any more), and I hope those of you who have had homes built in the eastern parts of Chula Vista will come through this.

My thoughts and prayers go out to you.

Update:

I just heard from my Middle School Choir Teacher. She works at Rancho del Rey Middle School, and informed me that area, as well as parts of Bonita, have been evacuated to a shelter at Chula Vista High School (which is farther west than the areas listed above). I know my friend Reynila is a counsellor at Bonita Vista High, and my High School History Teacher, Mr. Tony Maio, lives in Bonita. A quick check revealed that all the schools in the Sweetwater Union High School District are closed today, due to air quality.

Another friend lives in Lemon Grove, and noticed that Mt. Miguel (Spring Valley) was totally ablaze. She is ready to evacuate at any time - when the order comes, she will leave.

This sounds very serious ... please send your thoughts and prayers to all those in Southern California who are affected by the wildfires.