It goes without saying, our county was under siege this last month. The Rocky/Jerusalem fires raged for weeks destroying over 100 structures, displacing families, livestock and pets and burned over 109 square miles. The biggest wildfire in the State. Then just when we thought it was as bad as it could get, came the Valley Fire, stretching over Lake, Sonoma and Napa counties struck, evacuating and displacing thousands, injuring firefighters and a tragic, loss of lives. As of October 1, Cal Fire reports it roared through 76,000 plus acres, destroyed 1,958 structures and damaged 93 structures.
I know we were and are still very proud to have had all of those dedicated men and women from all over the state and Nevada come to our rescue. It was a moment we could all be proud of each other too. It was really scary to see that thick black smoke and wonder who was in harms way. Choking clouds blotted out the mountains and the sun for a while, cut off roads made it really hard to travel or do business around the lake, yet shop owners, neighbors, gas stations, restaurants, motels, and every service you could think necessary, all opened their arms to assist in making room for the hundreds of first responders that flooded the area.
Assistance came from far and wide; CAL FIRE, California Army National Guard, Kelseyville FPD, South Lake FPD, Northshore FPD, Lake County Office of Emergency Services, CHP, CDCR, BLM, USFS, Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection (LEAP), RED CROSS, Lake County Sheriff, Lake County fire agencies, Salvation Army, Yolo County Sheriff, Colusa County Sheriff, Napa County Sheriff, Pacific Gas and Electric, Nevada Division of Forestry, NVADG, Cal Trans, California Conservations Corps and Lake County EOC and others we may have not been told about. In addition, countless citizens opened their homes and shared their personal resources during our serious time of need.
Amazing volunteers came from every surrounding county. Spontaneously the Saturday of the start of the Valley fire, Facebook lit up in Sonoma County with folks mounting every sort of campaign to bring in supplies, bringing in trucks and trailers to rescue animals the list goes on and on. It was inconceivable how quickly strangers sprang into action.
Signs still dot the countryside websites and Facebook pages dedicated to “thank firefighters.” Now there is even a website http://www.lovelakecounty.org put up by neighbors to “help Lake County Recover from the valley fire.” www.lakecountylac.com and www.ncoinc.org continue to be clearing-houses for relief funds and other needs.
I think these catastrophic events will remain in our collective memories for a long while. It’s pretty amazing. You see things like this on the news and wonder how does it all get handled? Then it hits your own backyard and you know. It gets handled by one person at a time.
If you have a special person you’d like to name that you believe made an extraordinary contribution, please post something on Facebook and tag the Lake County Chamber or post on the Chamber’s Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/lakecochamber.
This is also a call to action to submit your nominations for the 18th Annual Stars of Lake County Community Awards. You will find the form at: www.lakecochamber.com, click on Events at the top of the page and you will see the information on placing your nomination for Stars. You may either submit it online or download a form to mail in.
Nominations close October 19.
Ted Mandrones is president of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce
