We have lived in our house since 1997 and in these last 22 years, we’ve had a few fires in our neighborhood that required us to evacuate. These fires usually happen in the fall, when we get the notorious Santa Ana Winds that blow in hot and dry air from the high desert area north of LA. The humidity then drops very low and any small spark can cause a wildfire. Unfortunately, it happens. The last time we had to evacuate was in 2008, when we packed up our cars as full as possible with our 2 boys, animals, photos, vital paperwork as well as anything the boys wanted to take.
Well, unfortunately it happened again a couple weeks ago. At 11pm on a Thursday night, both my wife’s cell phone and mine simultaneously screeched an earsplitting sound, warning us that a fire broke out and the wind was blowing it toward us. So, I looked out our bedroom window and saw this Red Glow in the night time sky that at that time was reported to be 9 miles away. We got the Mandatory Evacuation notice right away so we went into “pack up and evacuate mode”.
Luckily (in this case) the boys have now grown up and moved out, so we didn’t have to worry about them and their stuff, but we still had to focus on what to gather up and load into the cars. My wife handled all the gathering and packing while I was watching the progress of the fire by bouncing between watching the TV and going out to the street to see how quickly that Red Glow was coming toward us.
As the fire got closer, those of us in the street were knocking on doors, making sure our neighbors had either left or were close to leaving. I took a picture of the fire, as you can see below. Even though the picture is in black & white, I think you can get the feeling of what was coming our way. Although we never know when something like this is going to happen, it’s a good reminder to always be as prepared as possible with a clear plan that is easily followed.
Luckily, because of the firefighters efforts, the fire went around our area but not through it. We were spared! This close call reminds me of what I can do on my end to best protect my house. Make sure all landscaping is neat. Clean up and get rid of anything around the property that is just sitting there collecting dust and while you are doing so, take a good look around. How does it look?
Has it been a while? Could it use a new paint job?
If so, give us a call at 818-951-3207 and we‘ll be happy to give you an estimate. Or you can email us at greg@ferrispainting.com or log on to our website at www.ferrispainting.com and email us from there.