The Sky Was Falling

Yesterday, the sky fell. A car caught fire, sparking the dry brush off the 57 freeway near the mouth of Tonner Canyon. One minute I am walking into Albertson's with a short list. The sky was brilliant blue. The air was filled with the familiar summer scents of sage, coyote bush and eucalyptus. Walking out a few minutes later, the sky is ashen, falling like burnt snowflakes, leaving a pallid gray coating on everything outside. The unmistakable smell of smoke-spewing fire choked the lungs.

The quickness of fire is why brush clearance is a serious ritual in Southern California. It is why in suburban outskirts we “clear the brush” ahead of summer.

Brea firefighters were first on the scene. The winds were gentle- but headed towards Diamond Bar . There were no chances taken. Los Angeles County firefighters soon joined in. Not just local personnel, but companies from across the county. The Los Angeles County Sheriff took posts to prevent people from wandering in too close to the fire. CHP escorted traffic on the freeway safely through the pass. Except for the fire and smoke, it almost appeared to be an exercise, because it was just so orderly.

In a neighborhood just a half mile from the fire, Diamond Bar City Councilman Steve Tye watched trucks move in ground crews and helicopters do water-drops with residents. His presence was appreciated. He wasn't a politician campaigning. He was there to observe and to lend a hand should it become necessary.

From our vantage point, the flames could not be seen. It reminded me of real battlefield conditions. Yes, there is fire. But the enemy is as much the smoke.

For all the lack of coordination between agencies reported on the news, it was reassuring to watch agencies from the state of California, Diamond Bar, both Los Angeles and Orange Counties working together seamlessly. The fire, which started at the edge of thousands of acres of open space was miraculously contained to around 20 mostly parched grass-covered acres. True, the fire burned through the meadow where we drive by to watch cattle graze. However, if the understory beneath the oak forest on the hillsides had caught fire and the breeze had grown to wind- the damage could have exponentially escalated, decimating thousands of acres of valuable riparian woodland.


But most importantly, not one home or one human life was lost to fire because of the quick action on the part of our wonderful public safety workers. Thank you, guys!