View Full Version : Fire - Zigzagman ?
If memory serves, Zig lives in the Bastrop area which is an inferno right now. Check in if you can and let us know you are OK.
If memory serves, Zig lives in the Bastrop area which is an inferno right now. Check in if you can and let us know you are OK.
Thanks for asking - we are doing fine. The fire is a "monster" at least 30,000 acres with supposedly 500+ homes destroyed from the Bastrop Fire alone. From a firefighter friend, he is saying that including the adjacent fires (Austin/Leander/Cedar Creek/ Bastrop/McMahan) probably over 70,000 acres and over 1000 homes. 24 miles in length and 20 miles wide. The good news is that the winds have died to about 10-15 mph today and they are bringing in resources from all across the US. So far 0% contained but there are a lot of people working very hard in very harsh conditions.
We desperately need some rain.
Here are a few photos from the area -
View from Austin
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y41/Beststash/Fire/austin-fire.jpg
Nighttime view
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y41/Beststash/Fire/205891_257879430907196_193202960708177_1036367_722 0278_n.jpg
Looking back from Bastrop
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y41/Beststash/Fire/bastrop.jpg
Peace
Its just horrible! I'm glad you're okay zigzagman. I'll do a rain dance for you.
Unbelievable to see these photos!
Ugh, so awful. Speaking as a Californian, I know we are always soooo greatful when firefighters from other states pitch in to help fight our wildfires. I know the same will happen for Texas. So much hard and dangerous work ahead of the firefighters though.
Stay safe,
Kara
loosechickens
9-6-11, 7:09pm
Hoo Boy.......it looks awful! We have friends who used to live in Bastrop, and while they lived there, we passed through several times in our RVing life, and I remember all those big pine trees, which now, in this drought, have probably become great big tinder just waiting to explode.
Stay safe......we're glad you checked in!
The conditions in Texas are horrible, I can only imagine the stress and fear living there. The fires in east Arizona where bad earlier this year but I don't think the destruction of property was as bad. Rain, rain, rain....let's hope it gets to these folks soon.
Wow. Thanks for the photos, ZZM. I had no idea. It must be so hard to live there and know all of this is going on, unpredictably...I have never lived in wildfire country so I don't really know what it is like to have this kind of thing a regular feature. (We know blizzards, ice storms, and floods....but not wildfires!)
Absolutely frightening photos! Glad you're OK!
Eek - I'm safely in Wichita Falls, but my son, brother and father have been spending the week in Leander - a suburb of Austin. I know, of course, that they're a good distance away, but looking at those photos just makes my Mama Senses tingle, ya know?
I have lived in the area for most of my life and there have never been fires of this magnitude. And now the irony - we are on severe water restriction so everything is drying up even more. It would help though if people would stop throwing out their cigarette butts...
How awful. Like folkypoet, my Mama Senses are wacked out too...although my baby lives in Ft. Worth, but still. Stay safe, Z-man.
San Onofre Guy
9-8-11, 12:58pm
Massive damage like this occurs when government allows building in fire zones and then in support of low taxes cuts the resources to prevent and fight the fires. The large fires in San Diego were much larger than they should have been for these same reasons.
By the way, Rick Perry how do you like the Federal Government now. I thought that the Texas miracle didn't need the federal government!
Zig Stanislaus National Forest fire protection is sending 3 engine companies and 1 dozer to Texas. They left yesterday. Stanislaus National Forest surrounds us. California to the rescue!!!
poetry_writer
9-9-11, 2:42pm
I hate glib comments on an issue where people are really suffering, but what can you expect from idiots. I live in Northeast Texas and its really bad here. Some of the fire, they think, were deliberately set. And they are in rural areas san onfre. Many homes lost, thousands of acres....and 2 lives. A beautiful young woman covered her babys body with her own as their house burned down before they could get out.
loosechickens
9-9-11, 2:49pm
I can understand what you mean, poetry_writer......our Governor Rick Perry's glib comments about the uselessness of the Federal government while he's got his hand out for all the Federal help he can get for Texas galls me, too.....but as you said, "what can you expect from idiots"?
It's SO glib to bash the Federal government, but when life implodes around you by fire, flood, earthquake and hurricanes, we need to be thankful for our Federal government, and all the taxpayers in states without those disasters being willing to pitch in their tax money, their volunteer efforts and their donations to help the other states out. It is, after all why we are the UNITED states, indivisible, etc.
Our area of NE PA, where my sweetie was born and where we lived for many years and have many friends and relatives....is awash right now in terrible flooding and rains.....oh, how they wish they could send some of that rain to their fellow citizens in Texas.
Hoping that all our members all over the country stay safe and get through these current tantrums from Mother Nature.......at some point we may even start listening to her. ;-)
loosechickens
9-9-11, 3:45pm
If it were just the hypocrisy of Goveror Rick Perry in Texas bashing the Federal government at the same time he's begging them for money, it would be one thing....but when you see stuff like THIS, it's more than sickening.....how much, exactly, does our governor really CARE about Texans, and how much would he really CARE about the country should we suffer the misfortune of electing this man President?
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2011/0909/Politics-of-fighting-wildfires-Did-Rick-Perry-s-Texas-do-enough-on-its-own
"“Because so many fires are burning across the state, our resources are spread pretty thin,” Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said in a statement. “That's why we need the federal government to step up to the plate immediately.”
Gov. Rick Perry, currently the frontrunner among GOP presidential candidates, has been forced to press President Obama for more than $50 million in federal aid. At the same time, he defends the state's decision to slash by 74 percent the funding for the volunteer fire departments who do most of the work, and to cut the Texas Forest Service's budget by 34 percent, down to its 2008 level.
Money from the state's rainy day fund will be used to fund the current wildfire fighting efforts, Governor Perry says. State legislators will have to reconcile the costs later. The fires are costing the state about $1.5 million a day, 75 percent of which could be recouped from Washington.
Mr. Obama assured Perry in a phone call on Thursday that Washington will expedite consideration of disaster requests.
But what some have called Texas' “slash and burn” approach to balancing its state budget has left volunteer firefighters, who do about 80 percent of the work, in a lurch. Just last week, the most recent budget cuts meant 90 Texas Forest Service employees were laid off. Some volunteers pay for expenses out of pocket. And the repeated emergency calls are stressing equipment like tankers and pumpers not built for continuous use.............. "
and:
""It's very frustrating that they don't have the proper tools and resources to fight these fires,” Chris Barron, the executive director of the State Firemen's and Fire Marshals' Association of Texas, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “If fire departments had enough funding, if the forest service had enough funding, we wouldn't be in this predicament each and every year." "
A tragedy such as this, and the earlier fires in Arizona really shouldn't be a political sounding board for partisans. But, there it is....again.
loosechickens
9-9-11, 4:30pm
Nope, it shouldn't be, Alan.......but our Governor is using Texas, Texans, and his supposedly wonderful record in our state as a springboard toward his personal ambition to become President of the United States. So, perhaps its a good thing that others in the U.S. have a bit of a chance to see what a mess he's made in the great state of Texas, while pounding his chest about how great he is.
Look, when you spout off about how useless the Federal government is and how you want it completely out of citizens' lives, at the same time you have your hand out for millions of dollars in Federal aid, much of which wouldn't be necessary if you hadn't run your own state so badly, and so much with attention only on enriching yourself and your political cronies, then this stuff needs to be said.
I'm a Texan, and I am ashamed of our governor. I'm ashamed of his ignorance, his record and his hypocrisy. One poll of registered Republicans in Texas showed that only 4% of his own party members would be willing to vote for him in the Republican primary. What does THAT tell you? His OWN partisans.
I hate glib comments on an issue where people are really suffering, but what can you expect from idiots. I live in Northeast Texas and its really bad here. Some of the fire, they think, were deliberately set. And they are in rural areas san onfre. Many homes lost, thousands of acres....and 2 lives. A beautiful young woman covered her babys body with her own as their house burned down before they could get out.
We live in a high fire area of California. This weekend we are suppose to have lighting storms with potential for lighting caused fires. We voted years ago to pay an extra property tax to have good fire protection and ambulance service. Now part of that service is in Texas helping the people which is very good. But Perry needs to take responsibility for cutting the services in Texas.
We live in a high fire area of California. This weekend we are suppose to have lighting storms with potential for lighting caused fires. We voted years ago to pay an extra property tax to have good fire protection and ambulance service. Now part of that service is in Texas helping the people which is very good. But Perry needs to take responsibility for cutting the services in Texas.
California as well as 48 other states have come to help with their expertise. The Texas Forest Service is sorely lacking when it comes to equipment and resources to fight "forest" fires. Most of our local fires are grass fires and are fought with volunteer firefighters which are supported through local community BBQ and fundraisers. Everyone is very thankful for all of the expertise and equipment.
Gov. Perry has not made many friends with this cutting of state funding for firefighters especially in the worst drought in Texas history. Seems priorities are kinda mixed up - we are now spending $35million for a new road to the Exxon NA Headquarters in Houston which of course will also include eminent domain to secure the land. Not a very good way to make friends but is damn good for the campaign funding.
Thankfully the Bastrop Fire is about 50% contained but almost 1800 homes were destroyed and over 45000 acres. However as of today there are still 186 wildfires burning in Texas.
Peace
A tragedy such as this, and the earlier fires in Arizona really shouldn't be a political sounding board for partisans. But, there it is....again.
Do you seriously think that if the Governor of Texas was a Democrat who had slashed fire-fighting funds that right-leaning people wouldn't be strongly criticizing him/her this very moment?
I too live in a high fire danger area and have had to evacuate 3 times the past 25 years or so. (see photos of one of our fires in this thread - post 14: http://www.simplelivingforum.net/showthread.php?2692-Ready-to-evacuate&p=41718&viewfull=1#post41718 ) During those 2.5 decades, our community has lost about 600 homes and several lives from various wild fires. If our governor had cut funds for fighting fires as Perry has recently done, his/her feet rightfully should be held to the flames. Politicians are accountable for their actions.
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