Fires

In southern California, August is one of the hottest months of the year and the beginning of fire season. LIke all of nature, the fires are part of the natural cycle of the forests. But the fire that is currently burning near us is a little different. The area of La Canada and Pasadena/Altadena hasn't seen a fire in about 60 years. Needless to say, there is a lot of growth available for the burn. Because of this the fire has spread rapidly and in all directions. While we are pretty safe because we are about 10 miles south of the mountains with plenty of concrete between us, our neighbors north of us are not so fortunate. Thousands of homes have been evacuated (including our pastors'). From it's start on Thursday it has burned over 35,000 acres and is only about 5% contained at the moment. Amazingly though only 3 structures have burned. Those firefighters are amazing! Because of how rare it is to see such a big fire in this area, people are pretty curious and going out to look out areas to get a view of the flames. Dave and I are no different. It is a little mesmerizing. We've been taking photos every day I guess in an effort to document it. We actually have a pretty good view just from our own front lawn. The lack of winds have kept it from spreading any faster and kept it from blowing ash our way as well. That is definitely good! But we're still staying indoors because there are a lot of particulate matter in the air that can cause health issues. We'll keep you updated but know that we are ok and not really in harms way. The biggest problem for us will be the air quality. You can also check out for more information. Here are some pics of what we have seen so far.


The view from our street. All the white above the mountain is smoke-not clouds.


The fire at night from our viewpoint in Pasadena.


The fire just above Nasa's Jet Propulsion Lab, in Pasadena.


The view from above the Rose Bowl.