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[Yoshimitsu126]

My thoughts are with any Gaffers and residents North California. Read up last night fire wasn't budging and sad to see it still hasn't. Please stay safe and take evacuation orders seriously.

 

[louiedog]

Schools are cancelling outdoor activities throughout the Bay area.

Air quality is really bad. Down in the south I smelled it outside my house and I'm currently on the train going into SF. My eyes are burning and my nose is runny.

Stay safe North Bay GAF and Bay Area GAF.

I had an Oakland resident come stay with me in the city last night due to air quality. They're currently looking at last minute flight deals.

 

[see5harp]

In Sacramento, I smelled the smoke yesterday morning but by afternoon the wind had blown it away. This weekend I'm going to be in S.F. and Oakland. Hoping it's not super bad because I planned to do a bunch of stuff in Oakland.

 

[Miletius]

Watched the ash rain here at the Millbrae BART this morning. It's bad here -- stay indoors if you can, Bay Area GAF.

 

[Linkhero1]

Today seems to be the worst in terms of air quality. I stepped outside and couldn't breathe.

 

[Curler]

Awful today... I had to tell relatives to keep their windows shut. Even though the sunride today "looked ok", my commute to work could still see lots of smoke in the distance. Looks like heavy pollution or something. My car had ash on it too, and it smells real bad today.

Air index today is still at "Unhealthy". I sure hope they can contain it soon. I want to go back outside and work out again. Just an awful situation...

 

[WaterAstro]

I'm hearing it's considered the worst in California history.

British Columbia had its worst this year too with over 100 wildfires.

 

[hitme]

Hey SF GAF...

put a fucking mask on.

The amount of people (especially the children and elderly) outside without any protection is baffling. Even worse are people smoking outside.

smh

 

[louiedog]

Hey SF GAF...

put a fucking mask on.

The amount of people (especially the children and elderly) outside without any protection is baffling. Even worse are people smoking outside.

smh

Can you even buy one anywhere? I can't imagine stores were prepared with stock.

 

[hitme]

Can you even buy one anywhere? I can't imagine stores were prepared with stock.

Check your local paint store.

Most people would go to Home Depot and other big hardware stores, but paint stores such as Kelly Moore have them.

I just got two boxes (pack of 20) for my co-workers and my guests for my brother's wedding this Saturday.

 

[Necro]

Should we be wearing dust masks or respirators?

 

[opticalmace]

Hey SF GAF...

put a fucking mask on.

The amount of people (especially the children and elderly) outside without any protection is baffling. Even worse are people smoking outside.

smh

Yeah my coworker gave me one.. it was so bad even inside the office that I decided to go home/work from home.

It's absolutely awful.

 

[WaterAstro]

Hey SF GAF...

put a fucking mask on.

The amount of people (especially the children and elderly) outside without any protection is baffling. Even worse are people smoking outside.

smh

Actually, it's worse with the wrong mask, which is usually flu or surgical masks. You need a seriously expensive mask to filter out the smoke because flu or surgical masks aren't able to filter out the smoke particles that is being produced by the forest fire.

So since it doesn't filter out the smoke, it just makes your breathing harder, so you're taking in less oxygen for no reason.

If you are getting the masks classified as N95, then that's good.

https://globalnews.ca/news/3656438/b-c-wildfires-do-masks-protect-you-from-the-smoke/

 

[Parmadillo Marshmallow]

Actually, it's worse with the wrong mask, which is usually flu or surgical masks. You need a seriously expensive mask to filter out the smoke because flu or surgical masks aren't able to filter out the smoke particles that is being produced by the forest fire.

So since it doesn't filter out the smoke, it just makes your breathing harder, so you're taking in less oxygen for no reason.

If you are getting the masks classified as N95, then that's good.

https://globalnews.ca/news/3656438/b-c-wildfires-do-masks-protect-you-from-the-smoke/

Awesome thanks. I'm constantly baffled by people who are outraged and righteous about shit they know nothing about, or about flat-out misinformation or false data.

 

[Rootbeer]

Actually, it's worse with the wrong mask, which is usually flu or surgical masks. You need a seriously expensive mask to filter out the smoke because flu or surgical masks aren't able to filter out the smoke particles that is being produced by the forest fire.

So since it doesn't filter out the smoke, it just makes your breathing harder, so you're taking in less oxygen for no reason.

If you are getting the masks classified as N95, then that's good.

https://globalnews.ca/news/3656438/b-c-wildfires-do-masks-protect-you-from-the-smoke/

Useful info. I've seen a lot of people wearing them the last few days here in SF and in Berkeley. I actually thought about getting one myself, guess that's out of the question unless I wanted to walk around looking like I was wearing a Fallout radiation helmet or something

 

[Necro]

Actually, it's worse with the wrong mask, which is usually flu or surgical masks. You need a seriously expensive mask to filter out the smoke because flu or surgical masks aren't able to filter out the smoke particles that is being produced by the forest fire.

So since it doesn't filter out the smoke, it just makes your breathing harder, so you're taking in less oxygen for no reason.

If you are getting the masks classified as N95, then that's good.

https://globalnews.ca/news/3656438/b-c-wildfires-do-masks-protect-you-from-the-smoke/

you can get n95 masks for around 10 dollars.

 

[Ocara]

Going to a concert at UC Berkeley Saturday, hopefully it doesnt suck to breathe the whole time... (its outdoors)

Feel bad for the people who lost their homes. Ive been donating to a pool here at work for supplies and someone here is going to drive down to SF tomorrow to deliver them. (~2 hours away)

 

[Miletius]

Going to a concert at UC Berkeley Saturday, hopefully it doesnt suck to breathe the whole time... (its outdoors)

Feel bad for the people who lost their homes. Ive been donating to a pool here at work for supplies and someone here is going to drive down to SF tomorrow to deliver them. (~2 hours away)

It's been pretty bad here, but I don't know what it's going to be like Saturday. Might want to bring some air protection just in case. It's worse in the daytime, it seems, but maybe that's just my imagination.

 

[M52B28]

Classes canceled until October 15th at SFSU. I have a severe headache from the smoke.

 

[pooptest]

Going to a concert at UC Berkeley Saturday, hopefully it doesnt suck to breathe the whole time... (its outdoors)

Feel bad for the people who lost their homes. Ive been donating to a pool here at work for supplies and someone here is going to drive down to SF tomorrow to deliver them. (~2 hours away)

I work in Petaluma and live in Rohnert Park. Been too busy to pick up a mask, but I haven’t had any trouble breathing. I was in fairly close to a fire and didn’t have any issues.

Does it stink outside? For sure, but I personally haven’t had any sort of excess coughing, shortness of breath, etc.

I will be picking up one today, though, as it’s undoubtedly unhealthy to continually breath this crap in.

 

[XiaNaphryz]

I work in Petaluma and live in Rohnert Park. Been too busy to pick up a mask, but I haven't had any trouble breathing. I was in fairly close to a fire and didn't have any issues.

The winds shifted yesterday and also increased in strength, so actually the worst of it is farther away from the fire areas (aside from the immediate vicinity right at the fires).

If the winds shift again and/or die down, it'll get worse again for those closer.

 

[pooptest]

The winds shifted yesterday and also increased in strength, so actually the worst of it is farther away from the fire areas (aside from the immediate vicinity right at the fires).

If the winds shift again and/or die down, it'll get worse again for those closer.

Since Sunday, I mean. It’s noticeably much better here than it was, though.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Air is definitely better here today where I am. They’re doing mega drops by my neighborhoods right now. There are double bladed choppers circling right around where everyone in town goes hiking/mountain biking.

 

[Eye for an Eye]

Work just got cancelled on Tuesday. I do inventory at Home Depot and the next store was in Rohnert Park. Got word today they've closed the store. Still going to Emeryville amd Cambell. Hopefully it won't be too bad.

It was more gusty here in Central Valley, so the air was more clear than yesterday.

 

[XiaNaphryz]

Updates:

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Live-updates-Death-toll-climbs-to-29-in-Northern-12274332.php

3:30 p.m. California State Parks opening campsites to evacuees in Napa, Sonoma wildfires: Sites at Bodega Dunes Campground, Wrights Beach at Sonoma Coast State Park and Woodside Campground at Salt Point State Park are open to displaced residents, but they are not official evacuation areas, according to California Department of Parks and Recreation officials. The campsites will offer showers, bathrooms, drinking water and trash bins. Those needing more comprehensive services such as food, bedding and personal aid should go to a designated shelter.

4:15 p.m. San Francisco State University classes canceled: All Thursday evening classes at San Francisco State University are canceled starting at 5 p.m., according to university officials. The main campus, the downtown campus and the Romberg Tiburon Center will be closed from 8 a.m. Friday through Sunday because of the bad air quality caused by wildfires buring in the North Bay. Mashouf Wellness Center, housing services and dining services will remain accessible to students as will vital personnel, according to a statement from the school.

5:33 p.m. More events canceled due to air: The Humane Society Silicon Valley canceled its Tails and Ales event scheduled for Saturday because of declining air quality. The organization said it would provide an update by Oct. 20.

Walnut Creek Downtown's Saturday Oktoberfest event is also canceled as part of Contra Costa County's cancellation of all outdoor activity over the weekend, issued by the Department of Public Health.

5:57 p.m. Unhealthy time for breathing: The Bay Area's smoky air isn't good for air-breathers' health, and won't get much better for at least a few days. Air quality was rated ”unhealthy" for most of Thursday in San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, Marin County and as far south as Redwood City, said Kristine Roselius, spokeswoman for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

Farther south, she said, the air was classified ”unhealthy for sensitive groups" for six to eight hours Thursday in San Jose, and for three hours in Gilroy. Napa, at the heart of the fires, had the worst rating on the air-quality scale, ”hazardous." Roselius said the forecast is for more of the same over the next few days.

6:53 p.m. Some evacuation orders downgraded: The voluntary evacuation order in the Eastridge neighborhood in Fairfield was downgraded to an advisory. Residents are allowed to return, but officials said they must be prepared to evacuate on short notice if fire conditions change.

Earlier, the mandatory evacuation order of Silverado Country Club, Monticello Park and The Avenues in Napa County was lifted Thursday at 5 p.m. The areas west of Silverado Trail between Hardman Avenue and Highway 128 were also no longer under mandatory evacuation. Affected residents were allowed to return to their homes, officials said.

7:26 p.m. New red flag warning for Friday night: The National Weather Service issued another red flag warning for the East Bay hills and North Bay mountains. The warning is valid from 5 p.m. Friday through 11 p.m. Saturday.

Rick Canepa, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said that forecasters expect the winds to pick up speed again while the humidity will remain low. Models predict north to northeast winds with speeds of 20 to 30 miles per hour, Canepa said, but gusts could reach 40 to 50 miles per hour. High resolution models have also predicted gusts of up to 60 miles per hour, Canepa said, with northern Sonoma and Napa county as particular areas of concern.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Northern-California-16-wildfires-containment-12264391.php

TUBBS FIRE (updated 12:26 p.m. Thursday)

Napa County
Located off of Hwy 128 and Bennett Ln. in Calistoga
34,770 acres
10 percent contained
15 people have been killed
2,834 structures destroyed
16,000 structures threatened

NUNS and NORRBUM FIRES (Part of the Southern LNU Complex, two fires have merged) (updated 9:09 a.m. Thursday)

Sonoma County
Located off Hwy 12, north of Glen Ellen, east of Boyes Hot Springs
14,698 acres
3 percent contained

PARTRICK FIRE (Part of the Southern LNU Complex) (updated 3:34 p.m. Thursday)

Napa County
Located off Patrick Rd, west of Napa
10,817 acres
2 percent contained
5,000 structures threatened

POCKET FIRE (Central LNU Complex) (updated 3:00 p.m. Thursday)

Sonoma County
Located off Pocket Ranch Rd and Ridge Ranch Rd, Geyserville
8,130 acres
0 percent contained
16,000 structures threatened

 

[jellies_two]

This is an amazing story

http://www.smh.com.au/world/couple-...urn-everything-to-ground-20171013-gz0chi.html

A couple trapped by fires ended up standing/hiding in their neighbors pool for 6 hours while everything turned to ash or melted including the cellphone she had put inside her shoe by the waters edge.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Dang definitely have encountered that guy around town and at my job a few times.


Oh yeah: so in SR there is an unprecedented amount of police presence. I’ve seen Berkeley, Contra Costa, everyone is here. Which is great, but what’s crazy is their parking situation. There’s a main artery street that had basically 1/4mile of cop cars parked in the center lane. It’s active too they’re pulling in and out. It’s such a surreal sight. There’s just this giant wall of cop cars from every place on the west coast seemingly just lined up. All different makes and time periods. It was really cool to see the variegation.

 

[XiaNaphryz]

Updates from overnight:

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Live-updates-Death-toll-climbs-to-29-in-Northern-12274332.php

4:45 a.m. Evacuation ‘advisory' issued overnight for some areas of Napa County: An evacuation advisory was put in place about 2 a.m. Friday in Napa for areas west of Highway 29 between Oakville Grade and Rutherford Road, according to the Napa County Sheriff's Department. Residents are not required to leave but should prepare for possible mandatory evacuation orders, officials said.

5:30 a.m. Winds pose biggest threat for Napa County fire zone: Continued gusty winds, low humidity and higher temperatures threaten to exacerbate already extreme fire conditions in wildfire zones, the National Weather Service warned ahead of a new batch of Red Flag warnings for the North Bay mountains, East Bay hills and Diablo Range.

Expected north to northeast winds of 20 mph could kick up 60 mph gusts at the highest peaks, according to forecasters. The strongest winds forecast for Friday will be in Napa County, where the monster Atlas Fire encroaching on Solano County has burned 43,762 acres and is just 7 percent contained. The deadliest of the fires, Sonoma County's 34,770-acre Tubbs fire, has also burned through a part of Napa County.

”I would keep my eye on Napa Valley," said Drew Peterson, a meteorologist with the weather service. ”That's where the most critical fire weather danger is."

In Sonoma County, Santa Rosa could be threatened by warm, dry Chinook winds — caused when a sloping air mass that travels downhill becomes warm and compressed — which could lead to increased wind speeds. Such winds were a driving factor for fanning flames and rapid growth throughout the wildfires, Peterson said.

The weather service also issued a wind advisory for the North Bay and East Bay hills as winds may topple trees and down power lines.

”It's just going to be all-around poor conditions for fire weather," Peterson said Friday. ”The good news is after this event it looks like the conditions are going to be improving through the area, as far as fire weather goes. The winds are going to be subsiding after Saturday."

7:30 a.m. Deadliest of Northern California wildfires now 25 percent contained: The 34,770-acre Tubbs Fire, which devastated Sonoma County and spread to parts of Napa County was 25 percent contained Friday morning, according to Cal Fire officials. At least 17 people in Sonoma County died in the Tubbs Fire, accounting for more than half of the current death toll of 31. When a fire is contained, it means firefighters have installed control line to prevent the wildfire from spreading.

7:45 a.m. Wildfire devastating Napa County grows more than 4,000 acres overnight: The Atlas Fire burning through Napa County and spreading to Solano County reached 48,228 acres Friday morning, blackening more than 4,000 acres overnight, according to Cal Fire officials. The wildfire is now 27 percent contained — a large jump from just 3 percent on Thursday. As containment increases, that means firefighters have set up a control line along the wildfire to stop flames from spreading. At the same time, meteorologists with the National Weather Service warn gusty winds pose the greatest threat for the Napa County wildfire zone Friday. A Red Flag warning starting at 5 p.m. forecasts dry winds at high elevations that threaten to fan the fire's growth in the North Bay hills.

Today's air quality forecast:

 

[midramble]

The Nuns fire (a merging of the Norbomm & Adobe fires) and the Partrick fire west of Napa have merged.

3500 buildings. So far 31 dead.
Total of 140,000 acres destroyed. (For reference, that's roughly the size of Guam)

This is crazy.

 

[maabus1999]

If this story ends up being true, PG&E is in for a world of hurt if not straight bankrupt as the fires still burn (and more Red Flags coming today...):

http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/...fell-in-winds-that-werent-hurricane-strength/

 

[Curler]

If this story ends up being true, PG&E is in for a world of hurt if not straight bankrupt as the fires still burn (and more Red Flags coming today...):

http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/...fell-in-winds-that-werent-hurricane-strength/

I wish companies (in general) would take more safety precautions and stop going cheap to save a few bucks. I keep forgetting how the new Bay Bridge was reported to not be too safe... I'd be scared to know what would happen if an earthquake happened near it.

 

[pooptest]

If this story ends up being true, PG&E is in for a world of hurt if not straight bankrupt as the fires still burn (and more Red Flags coming today...):

http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/...fell-in-winds-that-werent-hurricane-strength/

They have oodles of money. I’m sure they’ll be okay, which not sure if that’s a good thing or not... regardless, they’ve been sued multiple times at values over a billion and still going. It’ll most definitely hurt, but I don’t think they’ll go bankrupt.

 

[SomethingWitty]

Is there an estimate for when the air pollution will die down? I can barely breath in Berkeley and walking to the gym and classes is making me anxious since I can see ash fog everywhere.

 

[louiedog]

I keep seeing people driving around in nice late model cars with the windows down. I saw a guy with a toddler in a car seat with all the windows opened up. Why?

 

[XiaNaphryz]

Is there an estimate for when the air pollution will die down? I can barely breath in Berkeley and walking to the gym and classes is making me anxious since I can see ash fog everywhere.

The big fires were only at like 25% contained as of this morning, and the winds are supposed to pick up again today.

Don't be surprised if we see another 3-7 days of this. It'll greatly depend on where the winds end up going, earlier in the week it was mainly blowing out to the ocean.

 

[Yoshimitsu126]

Is there an estimate for when the air pollution will die down? I can barely breath in Berkeley and walking to the gym and classes is making me anxious since I can see ash fog everywhere.

Does Berkely have any website or social media site they constantly update hr by hr? Anaheim had a fire and rescue twitter account that I followed to track when to head back home.

Stay safe and stay vigilant.

 

[QisTopTier]

I can't believe how bad all this has gotten, hope all the fire stuff gets snuffed out in the next 2 or 3 days if winds die down, if winds pick up and this goes for for a week it's going to get really really really bad

 

[Curler]

The big fires were only at like 25% contained as of this morning, and the winds are supposed to pick up again today.

Don't be surprised if we see another 3-7 days of this. It'll greatly depend on where the winds end up going, earlier in the week it was mainly blowing out to the ocean.

I've been checking the CA air quality site a lot this week, and you can definitely see the wind shifts, just with the movement of the bad air. ...then I check the CA fires site and the little fires are combining into mega fires That... can't be good...

 

[DR2K]

Holy shit. I feel so terrible for Cali.

 

[SomethingWitty]

The big fires were only at like 25% contained as of this morning, and the winds are supposed to pick up again today.

Don't be surprised if we see another 3-7 days of this. It'll greatly depend on where the winds end up going, earlier in the week it was mainly blowing out to the ocean.

Thank you for the information. I need to buy a C95 mask at this point.

 

[Cherubae]

The air quality is also affecting airline flights into SFO. Our flight this morning was so delayed leaving to SFO that we missed our connecting flight out of SFO before we even boarded the plane and left our airport; it eventually left 3 hours late with the passengers who didn't have to reschedule. We're scheduled to try and fly out again in a few days.

A lot of travelers were stuck in no-where land because of all the backed-up flights that have been booked full by the previous days' travelers, who also got stuck because of transfer delays. United said they wouldn't pay for hotel stays for stranded travelers because the delay was issued by the air traffic controller at SFO due to poor visibility.

There was one flight I overheard over the intercom that was changing paths to fly into Oakland instead, and then were going to load the passengers onto buses to drive them back to SFO.

Nobody I noticed were upset, given the circumstances going on because of the fires

 

[Miletius]

Thank you for the information. I need to buy a C95 mask at this point.

They are selling some at the Tang Center if you need them. At least, they were as of 2 days ago.

 

[louiedog]

Visibility is good right now and couldn't feel anything when I was just outside for 10 minutes.

 

[Manzanas]

Any idea how much longer this will last?
I feel horrible being indoors for so long.

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

Air still has a tinge of bullshit, but it is much better today.

 

[Curler]

Visibility is good right now and couldn't feel anything when I was just outside for 10 minutes.

I was SUPER surprised to look outside and actually see blue skies with no grey on the horizon!

Any idea how much longer this will last?
I feel horrible being indoors for so long.

Looks like the mega fires are FINALLY getting contained, so probably in the next day or so. I've really been wanting to take my dog on some walks, but have kept him inside too (especially since it's a breed with respiratory issues...) I've still seen people in the past few days walking their dogs, like nothing's going on -_- I've just letting him outside for a quick bathroom break and then to run back in.

 

[CodonAUG]

Actually went for a 4.5 mile run this morning because I could see blue skies again. Hopefully the weather is on our side.

Also, holy shit at the PG&E article. That is going to blow way the fuck up if they link them to this disaster.

 

[louiedog]

The wind must have really shifted. It's much worse out now than it was 3 hours ago where I am. I live on top of a hill and can see really far on a clear day. Visibility is probably half of what it was earlier.

 

[SomethingWitty]

They are selling some at the Tang Center if you need them. At least, they were as of 2 days ago.

I went to Tang to get some prescription meds recently. Unfortunately, a sign on the entrance said that they ran out of masks.

One of my friends said there was a hardware store on the intersection of milvia and center so I might go there for a mask if the air problem still persists. But looking at today's improving air conditions and the progress of how fires are contained, I don't know if it's still worth it.

 

[TDLink]

Lived in Santa Rosa about 20 years ago. Just for fun I checked if my house was still there... it's been totally obliterated, as has the entire neighborhood. Crazy.

Stay safe everyone.