Wildfires Rage On in Northern California; 3,500 Homes Destroyed; Hundreds Missing

Details
Category: World News
Published on Saturday, 14 October 2017 09:53
Written by Janet Walker

After a week of unprecedented wild fires marching across the once lush Northern California landscape, the harsh reality is setting in as entire neighborhoods in hard hit Sonoma are decimated; Many Napa Vineyards are totally destroyed; Mendocino scorched.

Fueled by high winds, nearly forty fires broke out on Sunday, October 8, as downed power lines from Pacific Gas & Electric Company, (PG&E) ignited deadened trees, brush and tinder, and are being investigated as the cause of the devastating fires.

Of the original forty fires reported on Sunday evening, 17 have burned a total of 180,000 acres have across  Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino, counties. These three counties, all synonymous with delicious California Wines are fighting for their very existence against raging infernos that are still, one week later, not under control.

Death Toll Expected To Rise as Massive Inferno Engulfs Famed London Apartment Building

Santa Rosa, Sonoma County’s most populated city, is nearly wiped out. No home was spared in the Larkfield/Wikiup neighborhood. The ariel views show foundations of soot and ash, trees charred black, decimated. The Coffey neighborhood is equally disheartening with complete destruction, as far as the eye can see.The Journey’s End Mobile Park nearly completely wiped out leaving a handful of homes standing.

In all nearly 3500 structures, homes and business, have been totally destroyed.

Stories that are filtering from evacuation shelters tell of having only minutes to escape the deadly blaze. Of going to bed not concerned and a few hours into the night facing a window of 15 minutes to flee as the fast moving inferno consumed homes in the rear view mirrors. Others sent hours in a neighbors pool, watching the fire destroy their home, as it was the only escape they could make in the minutes before the firestorm tore through their home.

UPDATE: Death Toll in Smoky Mountains Wildfire Rises to 11; Scores Missing; Gatlinburg Nearly Burned to the Ground

The home of Charles M. Schultz, the creator of Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the Peanuts Gang was also destroyed. The museum however was spared. 

Haute News

Haute Tease

  • White Boy Rick Review - Solid, Edgy, No Filters

    White Boy Rick, from Columbia Pictures Corporation, presents the story of Rick Wershe, Jr., a 15-year-old  drug dealer in 1980's, burned-out, addicted Detroit, recruited by the FBI who used him and then denied knowing him.

     

  • Auto, Yachts, Jets: Ten Tips For Pristine Porsche Care

    Purchasing a Porsche is the ultimate statement; cool, classy, luxurious. However, without daily maintenance, detailing and care, the dream purchase will become sluggish. Here are ten tips to keep your Porsche purring like an optimal driving machine.

     

  • Erdogan Pour un Tour de Plus

    La réélection de Recep Tayyip Erdogan à la présidence de la République turque éteint les ambitions occidentales d'assister à un changement d'orientation politique notamment au regard des enjeux géopolitiques cristallisés autour de la Crimée, de la Mer Noire et de l'Ukraine.  

  • Beauty, Style: Three Overnight Beauty Treatments Products Worth a Look

    Wouldn’t it be nice if you could wake up each morning with glowing, youthful skin? Although, sleep can help achieve that, typically it isn’t enough. For help, here are three ideas that will help achieve radiate skin.

     

  • The Son Review – A Passionate and Heartbreaking Journey of Family

    The Son, from Sony Pictures Classics, presents a dramatic heartfelt look into the challenges of life after divorce, co-parenting, hurt, rejection, and a family struggling to cope as they navigate what has become the new normal.

     

  • HL Business: Thirty Companies That Might Disappear in 2017

    It's one thing to predict the next Google, Facebook or Uber -- the hot companies of the future that will define the next decade of enterprise and investing. But what about predicting the next Borders or Blockbuster? Sometimes big business flops can be just as spectacular as corporate success stories.