Horno Fire

I was wondering if my home in Carlsbad would still be standing by the end of this week. Two wildfires came within a few miles of my house. That may not sound very close until you consider just how fast these fires moved. The previous day they easily covered 20 miles. The reverse 9-1-1 system worked very well and I received an automated call about the voluntary evacuation south of Palomar Airport Road.

I took these photos from the I-5 at Camp Pendleton as I drove home last night - about 25 minutes from my house. This fire was intentionally set as a backfire in response to a fire that originated at Horno, on Camp Pendleton, which is home to the First Marine Division. The backfire "backfired" as it got out of control and traveled west, over the mountains, to the Pacific Ocean about four miles away where it jumped the freeway.

When it hit the ocean it turned north towards the San Onofre nuclear power plant and San Clemente a few miles away. Shortly after I took these photos the I-5 was closed in both directions. Luckily, no homes have been damaged by this fire but one section of military housing, near San Clemente, was evacuated. However, inland areas around Escondido and Rancho Santa Fe have been devastated.

Total area consumed by these wildfires: Google Maps.

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