ojai news at The Ojai Post :: blog, newspaper, events in Ojai, California

whoa ... this is it ... the Rubicon has been crossed,
a hundred-thousand-plus acres ...

clearly somebody's Pot is going to burn ...

a lot of long faces in Ojai Town tonight ...

let's put it out with Beer!

You are cracking me up Millenium. Keep it up. Thanks for the updating on the fire situation. I wonder how long the winds will last?

I wonder how many growers have snuck into the National Forest and are risking their lives to harvest? California's largest cash crop is in risk of burning. I wonder just how much of our local economy will be affected. I'm worried that the fire will directly affect me when the cost of my next bag goes up. Or worse yet there will be a shortage and I will have to smoke shwag. I wish it would rain.

I was looking on an Ojai web cam yesterday afternoon, and again this morning. Is that smoke I see?

It's lightly raining ash in meiner's oaks, the sun is coming through filtered in that weird golden-colored way. There is a haze all around us. If anyone made the meeting, I'd love to hear about it.

waiting to hear the reports from the Meeting ... meanwhile did visit the Zaca Fire Bulletin Board at Starr Market today ... you can see the whole of the fire up until now has been moving towards us, towards Matilija Canyon and Lake Casitas.

today they set up a Base next to us, Casitas Retardent Base, clearing the area for the Heliport. we have had everyone here: Sheriff, Highway Patrol, Lake Casitas Patrol, Ventura County (Red) Fire Trucks, Forest Service (Green) Fire Trucks, all those green & white USFS fire rigs, and a host of new tan pickups (specifically released for this fire season?).

groups of strange ground crews in yellow outfits, mysteriously clustered close together in lines, digging ...

chainsaws starting up clearing brush.

air is still breath-able, yet smokey flavour not to be denied ... haven't seen the whirlybirds yet ... will report again tomorrow, Friday.

There is also an informational bulletin board at Rainbow Bridge.

Folks, there is a web site called GeoMAC where you can see real perimeters of the fire real time that are updated instantly. I just mapped it out, it looks like we are 8 miles or less now from the fire in meiners oaks. Based on the satellite image it does look like it has gotten really big on the front approaching us. I am readying my trailer for evacuation as based on the thermal fire images we may have to evacuate tonight in meiners oaks if the images are right. Did you notice at the Vons the data on the map has not been updated- look at the time & date.

Moon, how can you tell from looking at that map? I wish someone would overlay the image on a normal map like maybe Tyler did for the Day Fire? I looked at that website and the maps and can't make it out. How could we be both 22 miles away from the fire and 8?

agreed. every site I look at is completely inadequate. who is designing these websites?

latest news from Casitas Base Site ... tomorrow, Friday, it is being cleared for 18 helipads ... and they will close off the North Santa Ana Road access to it to the public.

and here is the website MoonValley just referred to:
http://geomac.usgs.gov

click on WildFire Mapping, then click on BIG TRIANGLE on California map ... then click again to zoom in ... you may have to click and wait for the zoom a few times.

according to this USGS view, as of NOW, 10pm Thursday, the Fire is EAST of Jameson Lake -- exactly at the edge of the Matilija Wilderness.

take that back ... scaling up the map some ... looks like it may still be West of Jameson Lake, that it is the Gibralter Reservoir that the Fire is East of now ... still some miles yet to go to the Matilija Wilderness.

take it back again -- selecting MODIS and HMS Thermal Satellite pictures -- the Fire ~IS~ now as far East as Jameson Lake, and the boundary of the Matilija Wilderness.

wish we had some reliable news services ...

If anyone has the ability to transpose some of these images on a regular, outlined map, please do. That helped so much with the day fire. Thanks!

This map was posted last night on Inciweb http://66.60.184.155/incident/maps/full/770/0/

If you goto the Geomap web site, select wildfire mapping, jump to wildfire ZACA, click down 2 times near the area coming towards us it will zoom in, click on the check box for modis, click refresh map(you can also do this with the HMS), then check on the box for cities/towns or roads or both, refresh again (if you get hung up, start over), you can see real time thermal mapping. There are scales of distance from the satellite,you can add, cities, roads, water bodies, etc. I am making a pdf of the one I just did and will see if they will post it on the web site here.

thanks moon! from the map you looked at can you tell how far it is from ojai and meiner's oaks today?

moonvalley - did Millennium cover what you planned to post, or do you still need me to post it? You have my email address, but nothing yet received. Thanks, Tyler

For publication or broadcast if desired : I feel I should comment on the state of affairs regarding the fires in Santa Barbera and ten states whereby the U.S. Forest Service is, as usual, refusing to use the DC-10 Supertanker waterbombing aircraft on federal land to stop these terrible fires that could be stopped in days if the supertanker were used. However the DC-10 is now being used on State land only. Because of such government incompetence, see: www.JBS.org (search:wildfire), sadly we have only one Supertanker aircraft in our country today. It is the DC-10 aircraft (able to carry and drop 12,000 gal. of water or retardant) at SCLA airport in Victorville, Ca. (See: DC-10 supertanker (on internet). The other Supertanker, the Boeing 747 aircraft (24,000 gal. capacity), is out of firefighting commission at evergreen aviation in Oregon because of NO U.S. Forest Service use. -see: evergreen supertanker (on internet). We must create a public outcry to force the U.S. Forest Service to use the DC-10 Supertanker on federal land continuously until the fire is contained as the DC-10 is now ONLY being used on STATE land and is thus critically restricted . Meanwhile we should get the Boeing- 747 back in service immediatly and build more supertankers. We owe as much also to the heroic ground level firefighters presently risking their necks fighting fires against inhuman overwhelming odds. Sincerely, Ed Nemechek. (760)- 246-8059. (ednemechek@verizon.net) (also see: firebomber publications blog (on internet).

http://www.keyt.com/news/local/9226156.html
Upcoming Wild Fire Meeting in Ojai

A community meeting will be held on Sunday afternoon at 2 pm in the auditorium at Matilija Jr. High School to update residents of Ojai and other nearby communities on the status of the Zaca Fire.

Representatives from the Ventura County Fire Department and the U.S. Forest Service will give a briefing on the fire and its anticipated activity as it approaches the Ventura County line. The Ventura County Sheriffs Department, California Highway Patrol, Animal Control and the Red Cross will be present to inform residents about any possible evacuations or road closures that may become necessary.

Officials from all of the agencies will be available to answer questions from residents and copies of the VCFD “Wildfire Action Plan” will be available for any residents wishing to know more about how to prepare themselves or their homes for a wildfire.
Matilija Jr. High School is located at 703 El Paseo Road in the city of Ojai.

Story Created: Aug 17, 2007 at 3:17 PM PDT
Story Updated: Aug 17, 2007 at 3:17 PM PDT