Mr. Oblivious checking in. Got up, went to work at 6am. An hour or two later a co-worker comes in, and tells me about a large fire in the foothills on the east edge of my town. The first I knew of it.
https://www.ksl.com/article/46628781/large-fire-forces-evacuation-of-nearly-400-homes-in-bountiful-centerville
Aerial view this afternoon.
@blaineg Starting at the center of the picture, near the reservoir, and running up and left to the edge of the frame is a fire break road. But the downslope winds helped the flames jump the fire break. That’s where the homes were destroyed & damaged. A little farther north you can see where the fire break roads worked.
Snaking up the mountain on the right side, and partially obscured by the airplane wing, is the very popular Skyline Drive. It’s a dirt road that turns the 8 mile trip from Bountiful to Farmington into a 27 mile, 2 hour drive that includes several 9-10,000 foot peaks.
The fire was started somewhere near that road, probably below that horseshoe bend.
@blaineg you mean this road?
@unksol Not quite, but I think I have been on that road!
Hope your house is ok!
@tinamarie1974 Thanks, we’re fine, my house is well below the bottom of the picture.
There were three homes destroyed and 5 damaged, but no injuries. Some friends had to evacuate, but their house is ok.
There were about 400 homes evacuated, and most have been allowed to return. The fire was spotted at 1am, so it was a rough night/morning for a lot of people.
Human caused, an illegal campfire. So far the lead is “two people in a small SUV”.
30 mph gusts pushed the fire downhill.
@blaineg
It’s amazing to see that plane fly like that.
@blaineg @eonfifty That is pretty neat to see.
@eonfifty @therealjrn I wish I’d got to see it. They brought in the big guns, that’s a DC-10. It can drop 12,000 gallons in 8 seconds.
I’m glad you and yours are okay and the fire is under control. This is now the hottest and driest part of the year here, with the off-shore winds kicking up. It’s keep the gas tank full and stack the cat carriers by the door season …
@stolicat Yes, it’s the same here, late summer always brings high wild fire risk, and fire restrictions. While lightning does start some fires, the majority are (stupid) human caused.
@blaineg @stolicat
Have the local powers that be implemented relevant required construction codes to make houses less likely to burn?
@blaineg @f00l in california new construction in rural areas has to have exterior surfaces with a certain fire rating and the wood shingle roof has been banned completely in some areas (the most common way the fires spread to houses were hot embers landing on shingle roofs) - aside from that, it’s been focused on containment and defensible space around structures.
@f00l @stolicat I’m not sure, but the houses in the affected area were built in the 60’s & 70’s, so they wouldn’t benefit from code updates.
Some of the houses that were lost look like they did have scrub oak very close to the homes.
@f00l @stolicat The only thing I’ve found with a quick search is:
The International Fire Code, 2006 Edition, as adopted and amended by the State of Utah, is hereby adopted as the Bountiful City Fire Code.
@blaineg @f00l @stolicat We built our house in a forest. Although there were only a few fire-specific codes in effect at the time, we specified a metal roof and Hardiplank (fiber-cement) siding. Still get a little uneasy during the last couple dry summers.
@blaineg @f00l @macromeh @stolicat metal and hardiplank are the way to go even if you landscape doesn’t set itself on fire constantly
Are you piloting and taking the photos at the same time? Also, are you posting to the forum while piloting and taking photos?
@elimanningface @blaineg can you post a photo of you posting while piloting and photoing?
@elimanningface @stolicat All of the above.
I wish it were me taking that photo! It’s a forest service photo, with the credit: Photo taken by Air Attack.
From their web site, that’s a coordination/observation airplane.
https://www.fs.fed.us/managing-land/fire/planes
@elimanningface @stolicat
Let’s be more realistic, how about a photo of me walking and chewing gum at the same time?
@blaineg @elimanningface @stolicat
I think I might know who is behind this fire caper.
@elimanningface @stolicat @therealjrn Though the authorities have said it was a campfire, local speculation includes lightning, meteors, and possibly aliens (ok, I added the last one).
@blaineg @elimanningface @stolicat I always wonder at the level of surveillance “they” might have when they name suspects in forest fires. huh That must be some kind of satellites.
@elimanningface @stolicat @therealjrn NRO stuff aside, from where the fire started there’s only one way out (unless you take the 27 mile shortcut in the other direction), so someone probably saw the SUV.
My sister has a friend whose house is across the street from a vacant lot where the fire was stopped. She showed me some pretty scary pictures. A lot of homes were just barely saved by the fire crews, in many cases the fire was stopped a few feet short of the houses.
@blaineg
Those fire responders will never be rewarded the way they should be.
Fucking hero’s.
@carl669
My nephew was working dispatch, and took several calls from residents in the evacuation zone that were upset that someone was pounding on their door at 1am.
“Do you see a police car outside?”
Yes.
“Are its lights flashing?”
Yes.
“They’re trying to save your life, open the door, and do what they tell you to do.”
And:
Someone is pounding on my door!
“Yes, it’s the police, you need to evacuate.”
Oh, I thought it was teenagers.
One of the better stories:
https://www.ksl.com/article/46629279/i-was-right-in-the-middle-of-it-101-year-old-bountiful-resident-shares-fire-evacuation-experience
Taken by my brother’s neighbor.
@blaineg that is amazing and terrible all at once
Nothing to do with our fire, but…
@blaineg a couple of days ago I watched a utube of the impact area of one of those drops. It SMASHED a Ford Explorer. Seriously doubt a person would survive being in the impact zone, or even a house.
@JnKL That pilot almost made a second impact zone.
https://ksltv.com/420824/first-responders-reflect-on-handling-the-gun-range-fire/