Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Fire update

Welcome to paradise.

I can’t think of anywhere you can live where you’re not in danger of something -- brush fires, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, avalanches, tornadoes, ice storms, monsoons, arctic blasts, terrorist attacks, volcanoes, you name it.

Currently we in Southern California are weathering brush fires. We’ve had very little rain and very low humidity brought about by fierce Santa Ana winds. It’s turned many areas into a tinderbox.

Yesterday morning, 10,000 homes were evacuated on the Westside. I was fortunate (as of this posting). The blaze was on the west side of the 405 Freeway and I’m about three miles east. That said, we were awoken early Monday morning with a warning alert, basically saying have a “Go bag” with essentials ready should we need to go. We got the same warning a couple of years ago when there was the Bel Air fire, although that was much closer to us. I’m ready with the essentials – key documents, laptops, and my Emmy.

And that reminds me of idiot Dodger outfielder, Pedro Guerrero, who had to evacuate during the Whittier earthquake. He hurt his back hauling out his big screen TV. What a buffoon.

I will say that at times like this Los Angeles really springs into action. Shelters were set up for people and pets, even horses. First respondents were vigilant and unwavering. LA County has an arrangement with other Southern California counties for shared services so fire units and helicopters arrived from places like Bakersfield. Thank you, guys.  If you ever need our Lifeguards...

Come daybreak, firefighters were able to employ super scooper airplanes (12,000 gallon water drops) and planes dusting with retardant. That and the winds dying down helped contain the blaze – for now.

But more heavy winds are expected tonight into tomorrow so we’re hardly out of the woods. As a precaution, lots of people in potential fire areas might have their power turned off.

Evacuees filled hotels, shelters, workplace offices, and stayed with friends and family members. We put out an invitation to a number of our friends.

Other residual effects: Schools were out so working parents had to suddenly contend with that.

The south lanes of the 405 Freeway were closed in the area, which caused traffic nightmares like you can not believe. Canyon roads like Beverly Glen and Coldwater were the only through arteries and not only did that snarl them, but the residential surface streets leading to them were gridlocked. One friend said it took a half hour to pass three houses. Another had to park three blocks away from his house.

Such is life in emergency times. For those of us lucky to still have power, we had the TV on all day. Most Angelinos watch KTLA, Channel 5 during these times. Most stations were on it, but  KTLA, Channel 5 has been a local station that has led with news coverage since they went on the air. KTLA had the first helicopters. KTLA was the first station on the scene with wall-to-wall coverage of local stories like when a little girl fell down a well in 1949. KTLA was on the air live during rescue attempts with local icon Stan Chambers reporting, hour after hour. That story unfortunately, did not have a happy ending. (Billy Wilder would take that story idea and turn it into a riveting movie, ACE IN THE HOLE, also called THE BIG CARNIVAL,  a few years later starring Kirk Douglas.)

For radio there’s only one real news station left, KNX. When I was hosting Dodger Talk on KABC I was also the fire coverage anchor. My main objective was to relay information accurately and provide a calming presence. I’ll be honest, I took my cue from KFWB reporter, Jack Popejoy. Sadly, he’s no longer with us, but he was the best disaster anchor of all-time. He was also a friend and I miss him to this day.

Meanwhile, on entertainment sites the big headline is that LeBron James and Kurt Sutter had to evacuate.  

Now in 2019 we get alerts on our phone. There are websites with up-to-the-minute information, and apps so you can monitor air quality, traffic conditions, evacuation zones, etc. I think back to when I was a kid and there was a devastating fire that destroyed much of Bel Air. Back then there was no communication between fire units, confusion reigned, and many more homes were lost as a result. Again, today’s technology and improved aircraft are saving thousands of populated acres.

So that’s the latest. God bless our fire fighters, police force, and other emergency personnel (on TV newscasts they’re being referred to as “heroes”) and for everyone in harms way, stay safe.

29 comments :

E. Yarber said...

Yesterday I had to assure my parents over the phone that everything was fine and all the bad things were happening far away, but my credibility seemed a bit thin when I began hacking halfway through the story and had to interrupt myself to shut the window because the smoke was getting too thick in my apartment.

slgc said...

Stay safe Ken!

JR Smith said...

Best to you down there Ken. As most everyone is aware, we are dealing with fires up here in the Bay Area as well. The first responders have done an amazing job protecting people and property.

JR Smith
Napa, CA

Stephen Marks said...

Jim Rome is burning. So I finally watched Once Upon A Time In Hollywood yesterday on Putlocker, go there if you want to watch it for free. I then went back and read Ken's review and he pretty much nailed it. B plus, too long and I didn't know enough about the Manson stuff to get the ending. But I did enjoy the movie, and after reading about the murders I really love the final half-hour, great stuff. No, I don't know why the scene with Tate in the theater watching herself is there, the scenes with Leo acting in tv shows could have been edited down and Brad Pitt deserves an Oscar for that ranch sequence alone.

Stay safe Ken, I'd hate to see you being invited to stay at Earl's house only to show up with that Emmy under your arm, "Hi Earl, I'm here"

stephen catron said...

Raining here in NJ. Wish I had the power to send it to CA.
Be safe.

John Hammes said...

Fortunately, we are surrounded by heroes every day.

Unfortunately, we really don't always take notice, until we are in trouble.

David Letterman referenced this reality, in his post-9/11 speech.

Be safe and wise, to everyone, and for always.

Ted said...

A bit late - Congrats on winning the Emmy Ken!

Stay safe.

Joseph Scarbrough said...

I just saw yesterday that apparently these fires were started by a man from Kansas who flew out to California specifically just to start the fires.

I wasn't allowed to read the article because I refuse to turn off my adblockers, but looking at the man's mugshot . . . I'm willing to bet he's a Trump supporter.

Ricky said...

Is this the same KTLA with your favorites Sam Rubin and Jessica Holmes?

Wish they could read this blog where you have a good opinion on them.

Sean said...

Hey Ken,

Praying for you and your family. I've been through a wildfire scare before myself. You might consider taking video of the inside of your house for insurance purposes later on. Be safe.


Sean

Craig M. said...

Lots of fire departments from Washington and Oregon have deployed to the Golden State, as many do, annually. I imagine other state also respond. The photos make it look like hell on earth. Do stay safe!

Liggie said...

Yesterday, October 28, was National First Responders Day. I've long wondered if he had one, considering such vital work they do, and learned it was only enacted as a holiday in 2017, just two years ago.

https://nationaltoday.com/national-first-responders-day/

I'd love to see this holiday receive more prominence in our national consciousness, and I'd love to see first responders of all duties receive more acclaim for saving lives (recognition at events, increased benefits, discounts, etc.). I remember when Las Vegas' hockey team had its first ever home game after the terrible shooting there in 2017. Instead of a typically sensory overload for the game, each player when introduced on the ice was accompanied by a different first responder who helped out on that day (EMTs, nurses, police officers, 911 dispatchers), and the first responders got louder responses than the players.

Angela said...

Such scary news, these fires and outages. I appreciate the firsthand look into how you and others in the area are dealing with all of this. And I'll echo the kudos to the firefighters and other first responders helping out through all of this.

Hope you and yours stay safe, along with everyone else in the area. And hopefully the fires will soon die down and you'll finally get some much needed rain as well.

Jeff Maxwell said...

Big Santa Ana winds on the way tonight, tomorrow. I’m a little out of the sphere, but embers can travel miles.

Keep Emmy and your big screen TV close.

Cowboy Surfer said...

honey fuck the cat...get the Emmy!!

Mike Bloodworth said...

It's a funny coincidence. I was going to ask you what you would take if you had to evacuate your home. Your Emmys? Some old M*A*S*H scripts? That box of pornography you have hidden in the crawlspace? Oh! ...And of course, your wife.
I was going to make it an F.Q., but there's no point now. Maybe you could make it into one of your "poll" blogs. Ask everyone what they would grab in an emergency.

Glad to hear you're O.K.
M.B.

Brian said...

Forget the porn collection, cat etc... You know cats are fireproof right?

Take the laptop. How else are we gonna get tomorrow's blog?

Now for the Emmy. Hmmmm......I wish it was designed like the Oscar statue, so that you could have easily "stored" it in your body. But Emmy has sharp spikes.

Ron Rettig said...

Glad your home is safe and my old home on Dalehurst also is. Even tho I live near Tahoe I've been watching the KTLA coverage on its website.
I remember watching Stan Chambers when I was a kid and watching the live coverage in 1949 of the Kathy Fiscus rescue attempt.
So for 70 years KTLA has been the go-to station for live coverage in the SoCl area.

Roger Owen Green said...

re: your list of places that are not immune to all sorts of catastrophes, upstate NY is not bad. We're not prone to floods (for the most part), wildfires, tornadoes. Hurricane Irene did do damage in 2011, but it's the exception. The last big earthquake I felt in upstate oddly was the one that damaged the Washington Monument some years back, but there was no harm this far away. I think I'll stay here, away from the coastlines.

Andy Rose said...

You can see the very first KTLA helicopter report from 1958 on YouTube. Also nearly the very last helicopter report, as they forgot to retract the antenna while landing and nearly tipped the whole thing over seconds into the broadcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruBeTdaRaAs

Janet said...

Does your Emmy not travel in its own bag? ;)

Seriously, please stay safe. Our thoughts and prayers......

Wendy M. Grossman said...

I'm not sure I'd be inclined to wait for the evacuation order, when the roads will be impassable. Stay safe, all.

In terms of everywhere has something: while that's true, some places have more than their share. California has fires, earthquakes, drought, and mudslides. My bit of London, very fortunately, last had a major weather incident in 1987, when a minor hurricane knocked down some local trees. It's a quiet life...

wg

Rick said...

Ken, long time reader, first time commenting here. I don’t know where to leave my question for Friday questions, so I’ll leave it here. Friday Question: Is ageism as prevalent in screenwriting Asia it is in television? The reason I ask is that I’m a pretty good writer (I have an agent for a novel I wrote) and even better with coming up with unique ideas; however, I am 50 years old. I have an idea for a story that I think would be better as a screenplay than a novel. Being that I am older, would I be wasting my time if I wrote a screenplay I’d like to sell someday or am I better off trying to adapt it into a novel?

Thanks,

Rick

Buttermilk Sky said...

Check in tomorrow, Ken, please.

Peter Aparicio said...

Wow...read all the replies and you were the only one to bring politics into it. Stay classy, my friend. SMH

Peter Aparicio said...

All the best to all our friends in California. Stay safe Ken.

Anonymous said...

Stay safe, Ken. Here in Jersey we are remembering Super Storm Sandy 7 years ago and the devastation. Janice B.

Waylon Mercy said...

Stay safe, Ken!

PS: Where would be the best place to pose comprehensive Cheers questions that you might answer :-)

Here in comments section or is there an email inbox?

By Ken Levine said...

Just leave them here in the comments section. Thanks.

Ken