Feeling "Unsettled"

Ben just came back from lunch with a friend and when I asked how his friend was doing he replied, "I think he's feeling unsettled."  That's a perfect description of how we all are around here right now in the aftermath of the fast, furious, and extremely destructive fire that raced through our area last Thursday, destroying about 1000 homes and many businesses.   

CPR News

Thursday morning we had remarkably high winds.  We often get high winds but these were incredible.  Walking Turbo in the morning was a real battle against the strong gusts and I avoided trees as best I could.  Returning home I saw that the wind had blown over a teak bench, flung pillows around the yard, overturned and broke a lanturn, and even flipped over all the doormats.  Trees were uprooted in the neighborhood and Paul texted that wind had even pushed the dumpster at his work into two cars in the parking lot.  The ferrosity of wind was unprecedented in the almost eight years we've been here and the weather folks were calling it a "historic wind event."  In the back of everyone's mind was that we hadn't had any rain in months and just a bit of snow so we were on high fire alert. 

Well, I guess that wasn't on everyone's mind since it seems clear at this point that some idiots started a fire in or near a shed on their property just south of town.  At this point there are no charges related to the start of this fire, but at least two videos show this shed burning and an eyewitness has relayed how he spoke to three people who said they had violated the fire ban by starting a fire there.  Predictably enough, the wind caught the fire and soon the nearby open space was burning.   

I was checking in on Twitter and it soon became clear that something major was going on.  People were reporting fire sightings and nearby Louisville and Superior were given pre-evacuation warnings.  These were quickly followed by "Evacuate now!" notices.  It began to look pretty scary.  Here's an example

It just got worse through the afternoon and into the evening.  Since I was getting most of my info on Twitter, here's a few posts to show you what it was like.

This map shows the relationship of the fire to Boulder, which is in the northwest corner of the map.  If the wind had been blowing west instead of east, Boulder would have been in its path.  I've always thought that our neighborhood was very unlikely to be threatened by a wildfire even though we're close to open space because there are several blocks of homes between us and those natural spaces.  But this fire was carried by the wind.  It didn't need to burn through the grasslands, open spaces, and homes  It was carried by wind across them into the very dense and populated suburban neighborhoods to the east.  And the high winds curtailed any flights that would have dropped fire retardants. 

I contacted several people I knew in the fire's path to offer housing and help, and was glad to find they were all okay and out of danger.   I, in turn, received several calls and texts offering such help to me, which was touching.  

A decent sized snow had been predicted for the evening and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when it actually began and the moisture could help control the fire.  By morning the resulting destruction could be seen as fires smoldered under the snow. 

In the past couple of days we've learned more about the extent of the fire's damage.  One of my fellow quilters lost her home, as did our Meals on Wheels volunteer coordinator, and the Chilean couple that Ben teaches English through the InterCambio program.  It's been a heartbreak to learn about the animals that couldn't be evacuated and heartwarming to hear about those who have been reunited with their humans.

The neighborhood where my favorite dog park is located was decimated.  Our Costco was evacuated during the fire and sustained extensive smoke and water damage, though the walls are still standing.  And the Tesla dealership looks pretty destroyed.  We had been there just recently to pick up our new car and had marvelled at how streamlined and empty it looked, so unlike most car dealerships. 

More on that car another day, but here it is as we're getting ready to drive away with it.  I guess all those charging stations are gone now.  

The fire has left me unsettled and writing about it hasn't helped!  The wind is still howling but the electricity hasn't even blinked all day, so I'm heading down to The Queen to do some quilting on this quilt which will be donated to "Outreach," or what we used to call charity.  Someone else made it and I'm finishing it up.  Who knows, maybe it will end up with a victim of the fire, providing a bit of comfort during the winter.  

To end on a more cheerful note, Ben and I did go down to Denver the day after the fire to celebrate New Year's and we had a great time.  I even woke up at midnight when I heard the fireworks start!