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15 Aug 06 - 01:35 PM (#1810431) Subject: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Our family's "second mom" Pat, who lives in an historic log cabin stage stop in Wyoming and has it filled with a museum's worth of incredible antiques, is being evacuated because of a fast moving forest fire. Her daughter, Kay's, house is also in danger and being evacuated, pets included. Please, please send them and the firefighters all of the good thoughts, prayers, etc. you are able as this would be a huge loss not only to the family and friends but also to our western history. Pat, herself, is in extremely ill-health, on oxygen, and in her late 80's. This has been her home for over fifty years. Thank you so very much. This request comes directly from WY as they know how much I talk about Mudcatters and their wonderful caring. love, kat |
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15 Aug 06 - 01:37 PM (#1810433) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing There is more about this at Casper Star Tribune. My beloved Casper Mountain is afire. It makes me so sad. |
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15 Aug 06 - 01:39 PM (#1810434) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: jacqui.c Good thoughts from Maine, Kat. Here's hoping.... |
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15 Aug 06 - 01:46 PM (#1810438) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Wesley S Yes - keep us posted. |
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15 Aug 06 - 01:47 PM (#1810440) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Ebbie And from Alaska, kat. Here are hopes for strength, clarity, peace- and for some good old-fashioned good luck. May the fire inexplicably turn on itself. |
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15 Aug 06 - 01:54 PM (#1810448) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Alba ...and from this corner of Maine too Kat. I know how much this place on the Planet means to you and your Family from your Books. I am holding Pat and Kay in my Thoughts and Heart and sending a special thought of protection to the Firefighters who are battling the Fire. May Everyone and Casper Mountain be safe from harm. Hold steady Kat. Love, Jude Harm thee none |
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15 Aug 06 - 02:48 PM (#1810487) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Janie And same going out from the North Carolina Piedmont. Janie |
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15 Aug 06 - 03:16 PM (#1810499) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Bert Lots of rainy thoughts on the way to Wyoming. |
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15 Aug 06 - 03:39 PM (#1810518) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: RangerSteve Positive thoughts coming from New Jersey. |
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15 Aug 06 - 05:08 PM (#1810572) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Thanks, everyone. No word, yet. Last I heard, though, the wind has shifted in a positive direction. (Must be all of your good vibes!) More as I hear it. luvyakat |
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15 Aug 06 - 05:23 PM (#1810587) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Janie There have been a lot of threads on the 'Cat over years regarding threat of fire. Never having lived in a fire-prone region, it has really heightened my awareness. Janie |
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15 Aug 06 - 05:35 PM (#1810603) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing It is frightening, Janie, and so sad. The last time I remember being there and being confronted with another such fire was in 2000 when I posted this message, which eventually wound up being published in my book. Today's fire has closed my favourite road at the base of the mountain. The one where we used to go to hand feed the deer and watch the red foxes play in the meadows. A lot of folk who live up there have horses, etc. I cannot imagine what it must be like for them, trying to get everyone loaded and out. The authorities are having trouble getting through because of the stupid "lookie-lous" who are causing bottleneck traffic on the main access roads. They are ALL getting tickets for doing so. |
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15 Aug 06 - 07:18 PM (#1810677) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Sorcha Oh no kat.....I've been out of town today...not heard this.......and sometimes 'rain' makes it worse. It is SOOOOO dry the rain can't stay ahead of the lightining..... |
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15 Aug 06 - 08:31 PM (#1810726) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Ebbie A fire chief friend once told me that sometimes at the beginnng a rain increases the fire danger- because the rain first washes off the dust but without saturating the leaf or grass or whatever, which makes the drought-dried material more flammable. |
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15 Aug 06 - 09:27 PM (#1810751) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Stilly River Sage I sniff the air every time I walk outside--it's a tinderbox out there in North Texas. I don't have trees against the house, never will, it's too dangerous. But the grass is so dry and it is such a waste of water just to water turf. I keep the foundation wet and I keep a patch of the back yard green so the dogs are comfortable. But the back of the yard is a part of a large greenbelt. And there are more black patches every day along the highways, where careless smokers have tossed their butts. Good luck with the homestead, Kat, and keep your fingers crossed for all of us! SRS |
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15 Aug 06 - 09:37 PM (#1810760) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing This is bad, folks. The update is not good. The wind is south right now, which could be helpful, but it is expected to go north towards all of the houses and town around midnight. There is also a chance of rain, but that may not help as noted above. Please keep up your thoughts going. Thanks, kat |
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15 Aug 06 - 10:15 PM (#1810780) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Over 7,000 acres and it just jumped over to where some of the transmitters are which my Rog used to work on. Not THE tower hill, but another one equally important. They are warning folks that the emergency call 911 number may be out of service. Three hundred firefighters brought in today, another three hundred tomorrow. They only have one slurry plane as it was considered a "low" priority fire today.:-( |
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15 Aug 06 - 10:41 PM (#1810794) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: JennyO Surrounding them with cool damp night thoughts from Oz, where it's still winter - and visualising a wind direction change to take the danger away! Blessed Be, Jenny |
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16 Aug 06 - 12:38 AM (#1810847) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Bert Mmmmm, perhaps I didn't have ENOUGH rainy thoughts. LOTS & LOTS & LOTS of rain to put out that bloody fire. When I was a kid we lived in a wooded valley. We named all the pathways to this or that road or wherever. Forest fires were fairly common, so we had Burnt Path Number one, Burnt Path Number two and so on. Whenever there was a forest fire we kids would go along "to help". The firefighters were really nice guys 'cos they'd pull out a young silver birch, give us each one and send us to the outer edges of the fire and show us how to beat out the very small flames there. We'd go home absolutely black and firmly convinced that we'd helped to put out the fire. |
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16 Aug 06 - 01:16 AM (#1810860) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: open mike i hope they have prepared enough clearance for safety. sending best wishes for a good out come. my dad lived in casper in high school. they had boy scout jamboree camp outs on that mt. as i recall. i should send you a story my aunt wrote about it., |
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16 Aug 06 - 01:19 AM (#1810862) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: John O'L Best wishes from the Blue Mountains in NSW. It'll be our turn soon enough. Hoping for minimum damage and no injury. |
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16 Aug 06 - 03:15 AM (#1810908) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Slag I'm with you Kat. We've had some close ones right here in Northern CA. last weekend I was watching the borate bombers knock down an arson fire about four miles or less, south of my home. And we've got a 16,000+ acre fire that has been burning for weeks about 30 miles North of us in the Mendocino Nat'l Forest. Lightening caused it. Air quality has be poor of late. My prayers are with your people and their property. May God protect both. |
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16 Aug 06 - 09:10 AM (#1811097) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Sandra in Sydney more good wishes from anther fire-prone country sandra |
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16 Aug 06 - 09:47 AM (#1811136) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Thanks so much, folks. They seem to have held their own, overnight. At least that is what I am reading in the newspaper there and on the city's site where they have emergency info for folks who live there and folks who are faraway and want to check on loved ones. everyone has been evacuated safely. I spoke with another friend last night who said they successfully fought off one two weeks ago in the same area. This one was a "perfect storm" mix of a lightening strike, wind, drought, etc. and started at the entrance to one of the canyons. She said it just went up in a fast-moving giant whirlwind of fire, marched right over the mountain and trooped down to threaten all kinds of homes, etc. They still are trying to save the ski area. So far the communications towers seems to have remained intact. Laurel, I would love to read your aunt's story. My sisters and my son all attended camp on Casper Mtn. at various times. There are a lot of stories about it in my book, too. Thank you, again. You all are the best. luvyakat |
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16 Aug 06 - 12:04 PM (#1811237) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Ebbie Thanks for keeping us informed, kat. My daughter and her family live in Escondido, California. In 1994, I believe it was, bad fires swept through many regions nearby. I was visiting at the time and from their back yard we could see the flames burning the hillside above the Wild Animal Park outside San Diego. Their current home is in a boulder-strewn canyon. There is less vegetation - I think - but... It's a scary thought. In 1994 my daughter's father in law refused to leave the stables where he had his horse boarded. He said that if the horse 'goes' he will too. Neither of them did. |
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16 Aug 06 - 12:09 PM (#1811243) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: SINSULL Go away for 24 hours and come back to this! I won't light any candles for you and yours, kat. But I keep you all surrounded in pounding rain. Stay safe. Love, Mary |
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16 Aug 06 - 08:36 PM (#1811721) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Thanks goodness for that, Ebbie! I think I'd feel the same way were it my horse, cats, dog, etc.! Sins, thanks...no candles is good, right now. I've heard from our friend and her daughter. They tok their RV to their palce of business and spent the night, though I don't think they slept much. They were back home, today, checking on things, etc. So far, so good. Appraently they have over 1,000 people fighting to keep everyone's homes safe. They will go bakc out in the RV, again, tonight. Anyone remember the Goose Egg ranch in the "Virginian" by Owen Wister? Well, the real ranchhouse itself is gone, but there are plenty of landmarks near the area where it was. One of them is a favourite old restaurant, "The Goose Egg" on Goose Egg Road. It is near the canyon where the fire started. According to the city update page that area is now under threat and has been evacuated. There's to be a meeting for the evacuated families tonight. I am sure your good thoughts and prayers are helping and my friends are comforted to be sure. Thanks, again. luvyakat |
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16 Aug 06 - 09:08 PM (#1811746) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Stilly River Sage There was a fire of some sort to the south of us this afternoon. I didn't hear any sirens, but when I went out back checking the dogs that burned grass and brush smell met me at the door. I got my daughter to stay near the land line phone and I drove the truck through the village to a point where I could see the fire was outside, and across a couple of boulevards from us (a couple of miles south). Caroline and I spoke by cell phone and she was to call 911 if I told her to. I didn't want any confusion with operators as to where my cell phone was for which fire department to be called. SRS |
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16 Aug 06 - 09:19 PM (#1811756) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Well, I think I was being a bit optimistic. My sisters just called to say the latest news is it is worse. Over 10,000 acres burnt and they are nowhere near getting it under control. Our friends' houses are okay, but the Goose Egg and all of that are in great peril. The highway out of town, which comes to western Colorado and runs right past the Goose Egg is reduced to one-lane. I am at a loss...I hate forest fires, or any kind of runaway fire...it just so damn sad. |
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16 Aug 06 - 09:41 PM (#1811767) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Alba Be safe Kat and I am still keeping You and Yours in my thoughts. The disturbing thing about Forest Fires is they do and will change direction at any time. I sincerly hope, and am focusing on, this particular Fire moving in a direction away from the Firefighters and the Homes of the people in the area asap. Try and remain positive Darlin. {{{{{{{{ Hugs }}}}}}}}} Love, Jude .. and harm thee none |
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16 Aug 06 - 10:23 PM (#1811816) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Sorcha Oh Kat....so sorry....I can't seem to keep up with 'local' news.... Biggest prob is that Casper Mtn is almost INSIDE a major city....and I'd truly hate to see the Goose Egg lost.......or any of Casper either... Guess ya just gotta live or visit Wyoming to really understand this place. |
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16 Aug 06 - 10:42 PM (#1811835) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: jeffp Hoping and praying for the best, kat. Jeff |
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17 Aug 06 - 12:06 AM (#1811916) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: GUEST,Rapaire I just got back from DC and on the shuttle up from SLC noticed that there was still smoke coming from the fire outside Holbrook, Idaho. That has jumped from 6,000 to 22,000 acres before I'd left and it looks like it's still burning. There was a much smaller fire visible from the interstate, too -- not just smoke, but the flames as well. The West is burning. Again. |
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17 Aug 06 - 05:52 AM (#1812074) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: JohnInKansas Google gave me a link to Jackson Canyon Fire Update that appears to be an "official" site – hopefully somewhere near the right area. The link is a ".com" but appears to be the same site linked above as a ".gov" and both links seem to work. It's possible it's a "mirror site" that might be handy if things get desparate(?). A link to an "evacuation map" should be there, but note that it's a PDF so it takes a while to load, although it's only 1 page, 458 KB (when I looked). It's difficult for me to make much sense of what's there, as I'm not familiar with the area; but it may be of use to others. An uninformed outsider like I am might think they just could have said "everybody," as the map does encompass an apparently large territory. As of yesterday the report was that "only one house" had been confirmed destroyed; but of course the "confirmed" part of it is rather significant. John |
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17 Aug 06 - 09:54 AM (#1812244) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Thank you, John, that is a mirror site of the city's .gov site. Thankfully, it looks as though Goose Egg may have been spared, though I do not have a confirmation on that. The one cabin which has been confirmed destroyed, I think, belonged to a friend of mine. The local paper has a slide show on their website: CLICK. It is 30% contained if the winds don't rise up and/or shift, etc. It is a huge area, John, with no direct way to get from one to another; one has to drive round each little mountain to get to the next canyon, etc. Not an easy place in which to fight fire, though the planes and helicopters help tremendously. The entire city is covered in ash, worse than when Mt. St. Helen's drifted over and that was bad. Thanks for your continued help, folks. kat |
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17 Aug 06 - 11:50 AM (#1812305) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Ebbie Wow. Great pictures. I imagine that vulnerable people in the city are being advised to stay indoors? Must be hard to breathe. |
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17 Aug 06 - 04:33 PM (#1812484) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Very hard, Ebbie. The only reason my friends and sisters are going out at all is to let their pets go potty.:-) Sadly, one friend called at noon, today. It seems not 10 minutes after they finished loading up stuff from their place on Goose Egg, the fire engulfed everything and it is gone. One person said it sounded like a frieght train coming down the canyon. They didn't live out there, but had all of the ex's woodworking tools/shop, some other stuff and the plan was to retire out there later on. It is so badly burnt no one is sure anything will come back next Spring, but i think it will. Her ex said the only way you can even tell there was a two story cabin there was the foundation is still visible. Even the two steel pillars which reinforced the upstairs disintegrated. They are calling this the "100 year fire" ...the big they've all known would come. Now, they have 40 mph winds, but a cold front is moving in. If it moves in fast enough they may not lose anymore homes. |
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18 Aug 06 - 01:12 AM (#1812835) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Ebbie Oh, that is- words fail me. I am so sorry. |
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18 Aug 06 - 02:14 AM (#1812850) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: dianavan "The evacuation area boundries can be roughly described as the area south of Highway 220, including the eastern portion of Goose Egg Road and the tributary roads in that area. From there the evacuation zone follows the southern edge of Highway 220 eastward to Wyoming Blvd., the south of Wyoming Boulevard east to Casper Mountain Road, then projecting out to include the Elkhorn Subdivision that is just to the east of Casper Mountain Road. The only areas that have not been evacuated south of Wyoming Boulevard are the Sunrise and Stone Ridge developments, but residents of those areas are advised to watch closely for futher updates." Does this mean you have to evacuate? Don't forget the photos. I hope you are Ok. |
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18 Aug 06 - 04:54 AM (#1812884) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: sapper82 My prayers are with you and your's Kat. Please let these fires be extinguished without loss of life. One thing to remember, though the loss of old and much cherished artifacts is a tragedy for those concerned, the land will, in it's own time, recover. Something we have come to realise, especially after the storm of October '87, is that it will often recover quicker andbetter if we don't try to "assist!" Fires are a feature of any forested area, (is it the Californian Redwood that needs fire to trigger the release of it's seeds?) By preventing smaller fires we have probably made those that do occur more severe and dangerous not only by allowing a build up of dead scrub and brushwood, but by allowing a tree density much higher than occurs in unmanaged woodland. |
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18 Aug 06 - 09:49 AM (#1812936) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing Yes, sapper, that's right. It also illustrates the problem of people builing in the wooded areas which have no natural sources of ready water. NOT that I don't think they should and this time they seemt o have had plenty of water available and folks did have brush etc. cleared aways from their homes. I would love to live in the mtn. woods, too, but it does seem to be a hazard waiting to happen. ONe night a couple of weeks ago they had over 500 lightening strikes in a matter of minutes...all potential firestarters. dianavan, sorry if it was not clear. I no longer live there, but my sisters and many friends do. It was my friends who were in the line of fire and lsot their cabins. IF I lived there, yes, we would have had to evacuate, but so far, the subdivision we lived in, right on Casper Mtn. Road has survived intact. This is the latest, from last night, on the city's site: Firefighters were able to hold the line despite the high winds that were generated by the storm. The latest figures remain 11,290 acres and 50% containement. The fire remains active on both its eastern and western fronts. 435 firefighters worked the fire today, an estimated 600 firefighters should be on the scene tomorrow. Crews will be working the fire line tonight. On there it says they only lost four structures. That is out of date as it makes no mention of the ones in the Goose Egg area. Thanks, so much, folks, kat |
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18 Aug 06 - 10:18 AM (#1812954) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: jeffp Sapper, I'm not sure about the redwood, but I do know that the pinon pine requires fire to release its seeds. |
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18 Aug 06 - 12:48 PM (#1813063) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Rapparee So does the lodgepole pine. There is a fire north of here which has now burnt over 135,000 acres and threatens both Atomic City (pop. 25) and the Idaho National Laboratory. A change in the wind and it could burn Craters of the Moon National Park and Arco, Idaho (pop. 1,026) as well as getting into various wilderness areas. Houses, fields, and cattle have already burned; the exact assessment isn't in yet. I've heard that the fire is only about 5% contained. |
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19 Aug 06 - 02:29 AM (#1813601) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Janie Even though fire is a natural process and necessary for the regeneration of some species, the forests we have left in this country are pretty much our last vestiges of wilderness habitat. I don't really know anything about it, but I would think that fact might lead to some shift in the cost/benefit analysis of wildfires. Again, without really knowing, it seems to me that burned land and the flora and fauna that inhabited that land prior to burning are dependent to a greater or lesser degree on unburned adjacent lands of similar character and flora/fauna population to serve as incubators for species recovery. As forests and wildnerness shrink, wildfires and other natural cataclismic (spelling?) events destroy or affect a much larger percentage of what remains. I can not help but think the day will come, as wilderness and forest continue to fall to development, when a threshhold will be crossed from which it will not be possible for wilderness to recover. I don't know if it is a valid analogy or not, but I think of pruning a shrub. Some pruning helps it. Too much pruning weakens, and eventually kills it. Janie |
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19 Aug 06 - 02:30 AM (#1813602) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Sandra in Sydney Sapper & Kat .............. Fires are a feature of any forested area, (is it the Californian Redwood that needs fire to trigger the release of it's seeds?) By preventing smaller fires we have probably made those that do occur more severe and dangerous not only by allowing a build up of dead scrub and brushwood, but by allowing a tree density much higher than occurs in unmanaged woodland. ............... It's the same here in Oz - we also have plants that need fire to regenarate, and folks want to live in wild & beautiful areas, & won't take proper precautions, and don't want ANYTHING burnt. The fire services can't do much in good times, then a huge fire/series of fires come thru, many homes & businesses are lost, & people die. I was visiting Adelaide in 1987 a few years after huge fires in the hills. My friends took me around the formerly burnt area where some folks were building on the exact spot where their homes had stood. One person who did not rebuild was the man who boasted of his swimming pool & pump - he forgot no electricity = no pump & he died. sandra |
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19 Aug 06 - 07:17 AM (#1813673) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: katlaughing jeffp, I've never heard that about pinyon pine, nor lodgepole. I have read that fire does help them to cut back on insect infestation. We harvet pinyon pine nuts all of the time out here in the West, so I know the seeds are being dropped by the trees and there are tons of seedlings of both types of trees littering the forests' floors both here in CO and in WY. Rapaire, I am sorry to hear of such devastation in Idaho, too. That sounds incredibly massive. I hope they bring it under control quickly. Sandra, thank you. Janie, I have great faith in Mother Nature. She will rise no matter what we humans do and, I think she will destroy more of is doing so. The fire is now 70% contained and a lot of folks have been allowed to go back to their homes, with cautions to be wary. The lost ten structures in all, which is a lot for that area. There are some incredible photos on the city's website for which there is a link in one of my previous posts. Thank you, again. I know your thoughts and prayers helped. No lives were lost. kat |
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19 Aug 06 - 12:30 PM (#1813817) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: jeffp It was lodgepole I was thinking of. Thanks for the correction, Rapaire. Rocky Mountain lodgepole pine produces serotinous cones which do not open at maturity because they are sealed shut by a resinous bond between the cone scales. These cones remain on the tree for years and require temperatures between 113 and 140 degrees F (45-60 C) to melt the resin and release the seed. In nature, only forest fires generate temperatures of this magnitude within a tree's crown. From this site. |
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19 Aug 06 - 05:01 PM (#1814029) Subject: RE: BS: Threat of fire - good thoughts please From: Slag Godbless any and all who have suffered loss of any kind due to these fires and a pox and worse to any devil who intentionally set one. Fire IS a constant worry in many parts of this nation during the dry season and especially during a drought. I believe the Coastal Redwood has a two year period from cone formation until release of the seeds or maybe it is a two year germination period but I pretty certain that it is NOT a fire cone as the tree itself is quite fire resistant and thrives in what we call the fog-belt. The digger pines and lodgepole pine which are more common inland DO need fire to open the cones and then in two or three years a whole new forest emmerges from the ashes. Left to nature this is every thirty to fifty years that a fire of natural means comes through these bioms and the cycle repeats. |