Looking for information on the Santiago (Irvine, Lake Forest, Foothill Ranch) Fire on the web?

Thank you for your concern.  I'm perfectly fine, my home is 2 miles downhill from the fire, and the fire is pretty much moving across the top of the populated area, not coming down into it.  The people in the canyons back there aren't so lucky, but it is less dense back there.

The main impact on area residents from this fire has been the smoke.  It's absolutely everywhere today.  The lack of wind has been a boon for firefighters getting control of the blazes, but it also means that smoke is just sitting over the area.  It's actually harder to breathe at home than it is up close to the fire where there was a slight breeze.  The local schools are all closed and people are trying to stay inside with their a/c on to filter the air.

Lacey:

No, we're 2 miles from the evac line - the fire is moving across the hills (from left to right as they appear in the photos), not so much "down" the hills, and my home is two miles "down" (technically west) from there.  Orange County does not have it nearly as bad as San Diego, though their smoke is contributing to ours.  The smoke is fairly nasty throughout OC, to varying degrees.  But power is not an issue.

As far as being memorable... well, I lived in Northridge at the time of the Northridge earthquake.  Not much can top that!  Wildfires are part of the landscape of Southern California, and a necessary part of its ecosystem.  While this particular fire apparently wasn't natural, it is expected that after a long hot summer (and it was a REALLY hot summer this year), when the Santa Anas (winds) pick up, they will be accompanied by fire *somewhere*.

A lot of the devastation that you're seeing on TV has to do with the real estate market in SoCal these past few years.  As the market was going up, up, up, new home builders were building out, out, out, into lands once occupied only by chapparal and wildlife.  These new areas are the ones you see in danger from wildfires, because as the demand for property in California soared, they built on more and more difficult landscape. 

It's often easy to forget, during a down market like we've been experiencing the last two years, but there are actually silver linings to even the darkest clouds.  The slow market has slowed the rate of growth, and the rate of building into areas that are most subject to brush fires.  With prices dropping somewhat, more people can afford to live closer to where they work, buying homes in areas that are less exposed to natural dangers.

And I suppose we can see somewhat of a silver lining in this bad market for the unfortunate souls who have lost their homes this week, in that a glut of homes on the market means that they will have more choice and more negotiating power to get back into a home and get on with their lives.  I cannot imagine how hard it would have been for them, had we still been in a rapidly-rising seller's market.

Last night I went up to see what I could see...

I could see nothing.

This is a good thing for residents of my area, as the fire has moved away.  However, it is still burning through the canyons, towards Riverside County.

The smoke today is not nearly as bad, I suspect things will clear up through the weekend and life will return to normal for anyone not directly impacted by the fire.

As always in Southern California, life goes on.  One of the things we can be extremely grateful for is our wonderful weather that makes even dealing with disasters easier.  I know that there is no other place I'd rather be.

Incidentally, I found some great information on wildfire preparedness and how to protect your home from wildfires.