News on the Esperanza Fire

Well if you haven't about today's Esperanza Fire that was started by an arsonist in Cabazon, here are plenty of recent articles about it. My sincerest heart goes out to the friends and families of the fallen firefighters.

Esperanza Fire Evacuation, Donation Information.
Riverside County Red Cross:
American Red Cross Riverside County Processing Center, P.O. Box 55040, Riverside, CA 92517. 1-888-831-0031. http://www.riversidecounty.redcross.org/
Source.





San Diego County sends 200 to fight Esperanza fire. Nearly 200 San Diego County firefighters were sent to help battle the raging Esperanza brush fire in Riverside County Thursday, officials said. Source.

Area Hospitals Brace For Smoke Victims. ER doctors in northern San Diego County are bracing Thursday for an influx of patients suffering from breathing problems as a result of the Esperanza fire. So far, the Esperanza fire near Cabazon has blackened 10,000 acres, driven hundreds of people from their homes, and left hundreds more stranded in an RV park. Three firefighters died at the scene and two were hospitalized in critical condition. One of those two died several hours later. Source.

Pechanga Contributes $50,000 to Support Families of Fallen Firefighters of the Esperanza Fire. The Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians today announced a contribution of $50,000 to aid the families of the four fighters who lost their lives in the Esperanza wildfire. "We at Pechanga are saddened to hear that four firefighters lost their lives. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the firefighters," said Pechanga Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro. "Pechanga's families pray for the safety of the firefighters responding to this wildfire. Pechanga will do what it can to help," said Chairman Macarro. Since this morning, an engine from the Pechanga Fire Department was on the incident as part of a structure protection strike team. Source.

Evacuees recall fleeing fast moving flames near Palm Springs. Source.

Longtime Idyllwild resident always gave to community. That’s how Charlie Clayton described the feeling in Idyllwild over the tragic death of friend and neighbor, U.S. Forest Service fire Capt. Mark Loutzenhiser, in Esperanza fire Thursday. It wasn’t until 6 p.m. Thursday that Clayton learned that flames had overwhelmed his longtime friend and four other Forest Service firefighters near Poppet Flats. Three of those men were killed immediately. Loutzenhiser and the still unidentified fifth firefighter were airlifted to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, where he was pronounced dead two hours later. Source.

Eyewitness account from The Desert Sun reporter: 'We were surrounded by fire.' "We counted a half-dozen homes in flames off Gorgonio View Road going into the Twin Pines area. There were some homes that had fire coming up close to the property lines, and other homes engulfed in flames... Power lines were down the road. There were dead rabbits on the road that had been burned. There are these really pretty white plastic picket fences melting on the ground... The fire came down into a lower ridge area. There were trucks there from San Diego, Riverside, Hemet. They were battling flames 50 to 60 feet high..." Source.

~Tina Jan~
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