Unreal

It's amazing how quickly these fires are spreading. Over 250, 000 people have been evacuated. Over 1,000 structures have been lost. The stadium has nearly 5,000 people living there. Every school in the entire county is closed. They've already asked us not to use our cell phones or go outside our homes and now they're asking us not to use our air conditioners. There are stores throughout the county opening up their parking lots for people with campers, trailers, etc, so that they can sleep. They're also allowing people with horses or other large animals to bring them to their parking areas. Twenty-five thousand people had to evacuate through Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton yesterday.

I've lived here nearly my entire life and I've NEVER seen anything like this. I've also never been as proud to be from southern California as I am right now. People are going to the stadium to offer room and board to the evacuees. They're bringing food and blankets and cots. Regular citizens are walking into WalMarts and Targets to buy up the camping supplies and take them to evacuation centers. Everyone - truly, everyone - is either evacuated or knows someone who is and they're stepping up to help. It's as though the entire county put their arms out and wrapped them around everyone else. I know that it will all go back to normal in a week or two but it's a really amazing thing to watch right now.