Catastrophe

Inspirational song: Bad Moon Rising (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

This has been an incredibly difficult day for Boulder County. Even those of us not in Superior or Louisville are in shock, watching our neighbors lose everything to an unrelenting fire. If you have any room in your hearts left, after two incredibly difficult years, please think kindly of the residents of the south side of the county. The devastation is overwhelming.

I've written much of the drought we were experiencing. It was the longest we had waited for snow, and I had complained of the warmth and dryness. I was so excited to have nearly guaranteed snow tomorrow that at first I was fine with the strong winds that heralded the storm front arriving. By early afternoon, Mr S-P was sending home photos and messages about grass fires that were kicking up in the mountains above Lyons and south-southeast of Boulder. We had no idea then how fast they would grow, nor how horrible they would become.

When we heard that they were beginning evacuations, the gravity of the situation was undeniable. Our friend in the weekly game group had his girlfriend and their cats loaded up and ready to evacuate when the call came, so they got out in plenty of time. As of a few hours ago, their neighborhood was untouched. Pray it stays that way. The news is much, much worse for our nieces. Two of them live in Superior, one in a subdivision hit hard by the fire. They are all out safely, staying with their respective parents, but we have only a little hope that the one's house is intact. No word on the apartment complex for the other. 

Earlier this evening, Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle gave an update, advising that over 500 houses were likely affected. Since then, I watched hours of live reports on local news, as more and more structures caught fire. I can't imagine how awful the morning report will be. Sheriff Pelle said the source of the fire is understood to be power lines blown down when wind gusts were peaking around 100 miles per hour. I can only hope that when this area is rebuilt, we can bury those damned lines to prevent this from happening again.

Snow is supposed to arrive in the early morning, probably after daybreak. The winds are calming, and turning back towards the mountains. It may slow the spread of the fire, but damage is already beyond catastrophic. This is the worst fire in state history, not in terms of acreage, but in structures lost. We will be feeling shock waves from this for years to come. 

Please, send Boulder County your love.