California fire

[calypso]

There is a fire burning uncontrolled about an hour south of me. I just learned that someone I used to know (named Chris), who ran a sanctuary up there, lost everyone this morning. Over 100 cats and dogs. Property was overrun with fire. Horses were on the property as well, but I don't know their current status. A mutual friend saw him and said he is not doing well. (I can only imagine).

Another friend lives up there - four horses - the fire is currently burning away from her place, but if the wind changes....

Prayers/jingles/good thoughts..

Frightening, and so sad.

[MustangAppy]

How horrible for him, I can't even imagine such a nightmare. Prayers for him... Our county has an active animal evacuation plan for disasters, but fire can be so unpredictable, often there is no chance. So very sad.

[kidznhorses]

No! This is so incredibly horrific. Prayers for poor Chris and all those lost. Keep us posted on your friend, Caly. And if you hear anything about the horses on Chris' property.

[toeps]

How horrible! Sending lots of prayers!

[Admin]

How tragic. I can't imagine how that must feel. Is there anything we can do?

[calypso]

Word is trickling back that there may be some survivors and he's trying to evacuate them. It is VERY chaotic up there right now.

It is a very mountainous area - narrow winding roads - quite remote given that it's so close to such a large urban area.

Last I heard (an hour ago) the fire is zero % contained and currently at 3000 acres. I can see the smoke from here and I'm an hour away. Winds are steady at 20mph with 40+mph gusts.

It's a tinderbox up there.

[littlebouv]

Bless your hearts! And it's only May!! Let us know if we can do anything!

[anitahorse]

I live in Santa Cruz. Evacuees with large livestock can take them to the Fairgrounds to be housed and cared for. There are horse people with trailers standing by to help - call 831-454-7303 (animal control). Other pets can be cared for at the local animal shelters in Scotts Valley and Watsonville.

[calypso]

Thanks for posting! (I think it's too late for his critters.)

I'm listening to Cal Fire on the scanner (my housemate works in law enforcement) - it's pretty bad up there, even with the wind down and humidity up. They're cutting fire breaks right now - just said "it'll be an all night operation". Right now they're looking for food! Wish I was closer... I LOVE to cook! 410 firefighters on the scene

[kidznhorses]

Any word today, caly?

[calypso]

Yeah, I talked to Lynn at PMR a little bit ago, and I talked to the Watsonville Shelter. Things are pretty controlled right now - lots of volunteers - weather is co-operating.

Fire is only 7 miles from PMR, but there is a ridge between them and the valley that it would be most likely to travel down, if it comes, so she thinks they're okay for now.

Here is the Cal Fire link:

cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/incidents/incidents_details_info?incident_id=263

On the right side under "more information" click on "maps" and then click on the "Google maps" note and it'll bring up a Google map that shows where the fire is. On the upper right corner of the map click on "Terrain" and it'll show you the topography of the area. PMR is located on Larkin Valley road, just north of Watsonville airport.

The fire could follow Hazel Dell Road or come down Corralitos Road or both. Depends on the wind among other things.

She's taken in 7 horses and is also spending time at the evacuation site. They had 250 horses this morning, according to her. Lots of locals going and spend a hour or two mucking. So far, it sounds like it's under control.

For small animals, the Watsonville shelter is tiny - I'm on standby with them to haul cats/dogs over to this side of the Santa Cruz mountains. They have little capacity, and some of the animals are going to need a place to stay for awhile if their house was burned.

Last I heard, 15 structures consumed. Not sure if they're all houses, or could be barns, sheds, whatever.

Fire crews worked 24+ hours straight. Mutual aid folks that got there during the night were told to rest up and they replaced fire crews this morning. I think last count was ~ 500 crew.

We can smell smoke here - we're an hour and a mountain away. News reports said it was being smelled all the way to Oakland (another hour distant!) It's hazy out there, but the wind is still. Good = fire staying down low, bad = very poor air quality. They had fog at the coast this morning so humidity was very high -> good. Sun is burning it off now, so we'll see what happens this afternoon.

No word from Chris. I heard "through the grapevine" he might have been able to save 17 cats, but that is not confirmed.

[mickeyfan3]

Caly -

I should be around all weekend....if you are going up there to help care for horses/other animals, let me know and I'll try to hook up with you. The less cars going IN, probably the better.

If there is a dog that needs a temporary place to stay, that gets along with other dogs, cats, kids.....I can talk to Scott about it. Cats....well, the doggie door is always open and Boots doesn't use a cat box anymore, so that probably wouldn't work.

[calypso]

Thanks Stacie! I'll let them know!

I'll call you later this afternoon and we can co-ordinate.

[mickeyfan3]

Just got this e-mail from Katrina of Roosters Haven:





HI all

This is an insider update from some of the folks that have horses at the fairgrounds & local equestrian centers in Santa Cruz.

The pics attached are from Sandi Austin of Cisco Systems(pics of her horses yesterday)
She has her horses at the fairgrounds.

Sorry if you are on the distribution and are not a horse person - I've been trying to get the word out to as many people as possible.

They still need hay, Elk Grove Stable Mix, water buckets, pitch forks, and of course volunteers in the evenings and mornings to feed and care. There are over 260 horses between the fairgrounds and other local Equestrian Centers, so please help any way you can.

Also wouldn't hurt to pick up some chic scratch, dog food, cat food & small animal, incase they are keeping other animals.

Folks that are going down there with donations & food and helping from the North San Jose area if you want to coordinate with them:
Connie Keeling at : [e-mail]
Renee McCarley at: [e-mail]

I'll keep you posted via email. Please pass on to community.
thank you for your help,

Katrina Lomax
Rooster's Haven
408-431-2273
[e-mail]


From: Sandi Austin (saaustin)
Sent: Thursday, May 22, 2008 9:22 PM
To: Katrina Lomax (klomax); horsepeople(mailer list)
Subject: RE: FYI!! Santa Cruz Horses Need your help!


Thanks Katrina for getting the word out!

Just thought I'd share. We have my three horses evacuated from the ranch where we board and they are safe at the Santa Cruz County fairgrounds in Watsonville. It's just amazing - the whole community just pitched in and people with trailers were lined up at the fairgrounds ready to go out and pick up horses. Red cross was there serving food. People donated hay. There are 260+ horses including two blind horses with their lead horse and an old senior citizen very chubby cow, some chickens and four goats. It really does my heart good to see all of the kindness out there.

Sandi, who will sleep better tonight knowing my guys are safe

From: Renee McCarley [mailto:[e-mail]]
Sent: Friday, May 23, 2008 12:10 PM
To: Katrina Lomax (klomax)
Subject: RE: Help in Santa Cruz


Thanks. I called Animal Control and they need help at the fairgrounds with the animals. We are heading up tonight or tomorrow. I¢ll see if I can contact the people who have the hay in the field next to Arzinos and the place off Zanker to see if they can donate.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Connie Keeling -X (ckeeling - Manpower at Cisco)
Sent: Friday, May 23, 2008 8:29 AM
To: Sandi Austin (saaustin); Katrina Lomax (klomax); horsepeople(mailer list)
Subject: RE: FYI!! Santa Cruz Horses Need your help!

Hello Everyone



My heart goes out to any and everyone in regards to the Santa Cruz Fire.



I have been on the phone this morning calling pet stores and small companies to get donations of food and other supplies for the horses and other animals that have been evacuated and or drop off due to the fire. I will be asking co-workers to donate money so that if we don¢t get enough donations for food and supplies that¢s needed, we can buy them. I will be out at the fair grounds tonight after work and most likely all weekend to help out in any way I can. Katrina, thanks for the wide spread email with all the information needed to get started on volunteering.



See you all soon

Conne



Conne Keeling

Lobby Ambassador - Bldg - N

Eco-Pass Support Member

Manpower On-Site @ Cisco

[phone]

[e-mail]

PICS TO FOLLOW

[mickeyfan3]

I talked to Scott.....(I'm sure he has regrets sometimes that he married someone who thinks St. Francis was the greatest Saint ever and is a bleeding heart when it comes to the animals....)

He's THINKING about the foster idea for a dog. Thinking means if I'm extra nice I can get him to agree as long as it's temporary.........

[NanciK]

Horses find shelter from the fire
Peter Fimrite, Chronicle Staff Writer

Friday, May 23, 2008

(05-23) 17:40 PDT WATSONVILLE -- They came to the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds from all over the Mount Madonna area seeking shelter as the smoke and flames closed in on their homes.

None of the refugees was happy or particularly grateful. But then horses really hate being uprooted, let alone being driven to a strange stall and forced to eat unfamiliar hay.

Some 175 horses were evacuated from ranches and stables in the path of the Summit Fire over the past two days and housed in the stables. That's more horses than humans staying in the fairgrounds shelter.

As the fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains continued to rage out of control Friday, just one family was staying at the Red Cross-run shelter. The rest of the community seemed to be busy looking after horses.

"They are part of our family, like our children," said Cynthia McCook, 45, of Aptos, who brought three of her horses to the fairgrounds as the fire began moving toward the ranch where she was keeping them on Mount Madonna. "There are a lot of ranches around here, a lot of people who love animals and love to ride."

The fairgrounds were bustling with whinnying horses and packs of owners kibitzing about feeding schedules, grooming and other issues only horsemen and women would understand.

It was clear that the area where the fire was burning near Corralitos north of Watsonville is horse country.

"I've been a horse person all my life," said Damian Escobar, 29, of Santa Cruz, one of a dozen people hanging around the stalls to watch over his two evacuated animals. "When I woke up in the morning Thursday and saw that everything was glowing orange, the first thing I did was drive up to the ranch because I was concerned about my horses. I didn't care about anything else but the horses."

The evacuation of the horses was an intensive operation, as it is not easy to quickly load up and evacuate a panicked horse, let alone 175. As the flames approached, some ranchers wrote their phone numbers on their horses in shoe polish and set them loose.

Dozens of other people not in the path of the flames hitched up their trailers and rushed into the fire zone to help. At one point there were 30 to 40 people lined up at the fairgrounds with their trucks and trailers waiting to be dispatched for horse evacuations, McCook and Escobar said.

Paul Tantau said it was chaos moving his 20 quarter horses from his ranch off Gaffey Road in Watsonville.

"I was in a bulldozer cutting a fire line while my friends were loading up the horses in trailers as the fire burned about 3 miles away," Tantau said, pausing to spit tobacco.

"I'm kind of wired a little tight anyway, but you do it for the love," he said. "Raising these horses and training them is a lot of work, and I've had some of them since they were babies. Me and my wife didn't have kids, so these horses are my children."

Some of the horses were still a bit jittery Friday. At one point a brown, one-eyed quarter horse broke free and ran frantically around the stalls until it was surrounded and calmed by volunteers.

"Everybody has been so great, so great," said Mary Sullivan-White, a member of the Santa Cruz County Horsemen's Association, who was coordinating the activity at the fairgrounds. "I have volunteers up the wazoo."

Judy Mitchell, the owner of Mitchell Ranch, said the fire forced her to bring 45 horses to the fairgrounds stables.

"I need to find a way to thank everybody because I made one phone call and within an hour my place was evacuated," she said, a tear forming in her eye. "They put up with horses that didn't want to be moved and owners who were panicking. I'm a mile down a single-lane dirt road, so it wasn't an easy job."

Mitchell had to leave 15 stallions that were too agitated and dangerous to move, so she was busy driving back and forth between her ranch and the fairgrounds. She said a veterinarian is ready to sedate the stallions if they have to be moved.

"It's no time to relax," she said. She was interrupted by a loud whinny from a white-and-brown horse in a corner stall.

"That's Macho," Mitchell said. "He was the one who told us about the fire. He was pacing and yelling, giving us the signal that it was time to go. He's my hero."


E-mail Peter Fimrite at [e-mail]

[earlybp]

Oh I just found this thread. What's happened with Chris and his rescues? It's only May. This is a bad sign.

[calypso]

They're up to 260 horses at the fairgrounds now, but drowning in volunteers. It's nice to watch people pull together!

Kay talked to Chris this morning. He had maybe 10 minutes warning so he opened all the doors and gates and let them run loose to give them the best chance at surviving. He's found a number who didn't make it, but has also seen some that did. No count yet on survivors.

I cannot imagine.

[swissgrl]

OMG, I just got on for the first time in a few days (d**n tournament work...) I hope everything has calmed down.
Caly, how is your friend doing? Has he been able to get everybody back that did make it?

[calypso]

I don't know what the situation is now. Here's how I understand it:

The first started VERY close to his place. He had less than 10 minutes from the time he saw the fire to it's arrival. He did what any of us would have done - through open all the doors, gates, etc to let the animals run for their lives...then ran for his.

The first word (he'd lost everything) came from his friend/neighbor who saw him shortly after - he assumed everyone had died cause it was such a firestorm. Later he was able to get back in and saw a number of survivors (that was the second word - came to me in a roundabout way as "he was able to evacuate some" but was actually that some had survived..who knows how! Later word was from a our mutual friend who talked to him twice and he'd found survivors and those that hadn't survived, but I don't have any sense of how many and what condition. That was the word Friday night.

Saturday morning, early, I had a major cat emergency and spent 11 hours at the vet hospital on Saturday alone, so I've been out of the loop since. (The cat, Louie, is stable-ish, and I'm hoping to bring him home today or tomorrow. The only thing they are doing that I can't is IV fluids, and we think he'll do okay with subbies. He's not eating there except when I'm feeding him and he's in liver failure, so eating is essential to his survival. I'll syringe-feed him at home if he still won't eat. We don't know - yet - what the primary problem is but he's got a platelet issue - bruised beyond belief all over his body - which is tied to the liver problem. Primary or secondary...we don't know. :-( )

[piopico]

Sorry to hear about Louie Caly- I hope he pulls through for you.

[calypso]

Thanks piopico - he's still there. :-(

Sorry I've been so MIA! I hope you had fun last weekend!

[earlybp]

Oh poor Louie! I had a cat pass away from liver failure. It's awful. I hope Louie pulls through!

[calypso]

Just spoke with Chris - he's still gathering up his animals. He think about 50% of the cats survived. He has two horses (media said 5, he doesn't know why - it's always been just two) and has managed to get a couple small bales. I'd like to take about 2 weeks worth up to him - half alfalfa and half orchard grass. Anyone want to help?

This would be a one-time deal to give him time to get them taken care of while he gets his supply line going. He's received help for the cats - he's well connected in small animal (he has a big heart and a hard head - you either love him.....or not).

Orchard grass is $23 for 100# bale; alfalfa is $20 for 110# bale (now, aren't you glad you DON'T live down here??) so we're talking about 3 bales of each - about $150 if I did the math right.

Frankly, I cannot afford even this with Louie's mounting vet bills, but if the shoe were on the other foot.......

If you want to help, I'm going tomorrow to get it, so paypal away! And, have my deepest gratitude.

I started a thread for Louie this morning - he's still very much up in the air.

[piopico]

I sent $20 but forgot to say it was for hay for Chris.

[calypso]

Thank you Kerry! I got it! MUCH appreciated!

[calypso]

Well, I have been to Hell today.

This afternoon I hijacked a friend (tncowboy from the old board) and we picked up 650 pounds of hay and took it up to Chris. He was at ground zero for the fire. The only reason he, and anyone else, survived is cause the fire had to go down a small valley and up a ridge from where it started before it hit him (his place was first in line) and no one lived in that valley. It is Obvious where it started and they know who was at fault so I hope they throw whatever book they have at him!

The devastation was complete. Buildings, vehicles, trees, vegatation everything, completely toast. There were two small stands of trees and shrubs that were heavily singed, but still standing. That was it. Everything else was completely charred but the arena. Nothing to burn there. I cannot imagine how any of the animals survived, but some did. The horses were in good shape - in general (weight, teeth, coats, etc) but especially given what they just went through. They were sweet and friendly and acted like nothing had happened. Chris had just a half bale left and was EXTREMELY grateful for the help. He tried to give me some $$ for it but I refused - he's got a lot of cost and work ahead of him.

One the way up we picked up a woman who is/was his neighbor. It was her first time back to her property since running from the fire that morning. She got her 2 dogs and cat out, but the cat bolted from the friend's house where she was staying, so she's trying for find him. She's still pretty shaken. She lost everything. She told me most folks up there did not have fire insurance because they couldn't get it. I don't know what they'll do.

Chis is stubborn. Big heart. Hard head. He'll rebuild.

Thanks Kerrie for your donation to. That was very kind of you! I know everyone is seriously tapped out right now, me included. But today I caught a glimpse of how much I still have.

I just can't imagine.