{"id":487,"date":"2015-08-24T20:47:18","date_gmt":"2015-08-24T20:47:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/isobaresoffit.com\/?p=487"},"modified":"2015-08-24T21:17:33","modified_gmt":"2015-08-24T21:17:33","slug":"blanketed-by-smoke-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isobaresoffit.com\/2015\/08\/24\/blanketed-by-smoke-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Blanketed by Smoke Again"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is the seventh day where we’ve been covered by smoke from the wild fires burning out in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and California.\u00a0 Our hearts truly feel for those who have been affected by those fires as we know what it is like to have fire threaten everything that you hold dear.\u00a0 We remember very well June of 2012 and 2013 when we watched helplessly as fire consumed homes of some of our friends and co-workers.\u00a0 Although we were fortunate in both cases to be spared anything other than having ashes get into our house, it was still quite frightening\u00a0as we were very close to the evacuation\u00a0zones.\u00a0 We had a clear view of the Waldo Canyon fire when it jumped the ridge and swept into the Mountain Shadows neighborhood and it was a sight that we’ll never forget.<\/p>\n

\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Day Two<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Moving North<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We were driving home from visiting our youngest daughter at college in Boulder when we saw the\u00a0smoke\u00a0rising from near the base of Pikes Peak.\u00a0 At the time, that was the first time we’d ever seen smoke so close to the city of Colorado Springs and when we first saw it, we were surprised, but not too concerned.\u00a0 Over the next couple of days, we watched as the fire spread and moved north, but the daily fire briefings were confident that they could contain the fire west of the\u00a0neighborhoods at the base of the foothills.<\/p>\n

\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire as We Drove Home<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Spreads<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Unfortunately, the winds were strong that summer and, add to that the weather system that the fire creates for itself,\u00a0the fire jumped the ridge that was being used as a fire break.\u00a0 From the time that the fire broke the ridge and\u00a0the mayor ordered an immediate evacuation of the neighborhoods, to when the fire swept down to the houses, it couldn’t have been more than 20 minutes.\u00a0 We watched, mesmerized by the site before our eyes.\u00a0 It is hard to explain how\u00a0something so horrible can\u00a0somehow be beautiful at the same time.\u00a0 The fire fighters truly did a heroic job to save as many houses as they did, especially under the circumstances that they were under.\u00a0 At one point, before they got a handle on the fire, there was serious concern that it would sweep through the neighborhoods and continue east across the highway.<\/p>\n

\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Jumps the Ridge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Heads Towards Mountain Shadows<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Probably the worst part of the fire for us personally was when the wind changed and blew the smoke directly at us.\u00a0 The sun was blotted from the sky and we were enveloped in an eerie, orange, smoke plume.\u00a0 As ashes landed in the yard and on the house, we were concerned about whether any of the embers could be hot enough to spark a fire in our own neighborhood.\u00a0 After a sleepless night watching the fires burning homes on the hills across from us, the sun rose to a morning where the fire fighters started to make gains on containing the fire.\u00a0 It took a few more days for them to completely eliminate any hot spots, but there was a sense of relief and an outpouring of support for those that were affected by the fire.<\/p>\n

\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Orange Smoke Plume<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Smoke Plume<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It was unfathomable to believe that a year later, almost to the day, we’d be watching smoke plumes billow above our neighborhood once again.\u00a0 The Black Forest fire was north of us and once again we were on the edge of the pre-evacuation zone.\u00a0 Although we were unable to see the fire itself other than by watching the news reports, the memory of the fire sweeping down from the ridge during the Waldo Canyon fire was literally seared in our minds.\u00a0 More friends and co-workers lost their homes and possessions, while all of us watched helplessly, listening diligently to the afternoon fire briefings.\u00a0 Between the two fires, more than 800 homes were destroyed affecting thousands of lives.<\/p>\n

\"Black<\/a>
Black Forest Fire<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Black<\/a>
Black Forest Fire Smoke Plume<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So, although the smoke is causing our allergies to be worse and the haze of the smoke is all around us, our thoughts are with those in all of the states where the fires are actively burning.\u00a0 Fire is truly wild and unpredictable, it can destroy one home and suddenly jump and completely miss another.\u00a0 Worst of all is the loss of life due to the fires, whether fire fighters, home owners caught off guard, or\u00a0animals that have to be\u00a0left behind, every lost life is tragic.\u00a0 We are truly hopeful that the fire fighters will gain the upper hand in the days to come.<\/p>\n

\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Smoke Filled Neighborhood<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Waldo<\/a>
Waldo Canyon Fire Day One<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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