Went outside this morning to find that a lot more ash had fallen then the light dusting of previous nights. This stuff appears to contain bits of burned needles and possibly slivers of wood or bark. Some of them are so delicate a puff of breath will disintegrate them.
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It was a filthy afternoon here in Eagle Creek. This morning the smoke wasn't too bad and visibility was pretty good. By afternoon everything had changed. Around 3:10, I noticed that a breeze had sprung up. Within 15 minutes the smoke was so thick I started wearing a mask when I went outside.
Prior to the abrupt change in the smoke, I'd received an update from Margo - our CRD director. Our alert has been extended to encompass Mahood Lake and environs. Area L to the south of 100 Mile has also been put on alert as the Ashcroft fire has crossed Loon Lake and is now advancing towards Green Lake.
The winds have been picking up then dieing back down most of the afternoon. Gusts blow in, toss the trees around for a bit then .....vanish. So far, we've yet to see the forecasted 30 - 50kph gusts and I most sincerely hope we don't.
I've been waiting all afternoon to hear that friends of mine have arrived back home. My girl friend Virginia is hoping to get in by the back-road from Clearwater. My other two friends are coming up from Penticton and were planning to come in HWY 24 to the Interlakes intersection. Been calling off and on all afternoon but nobody is back yet. They all have legitimate reasons for coming in, so I don't see why it is taking so long. I did inform all of them that they would most likely be stopped and questioned. The police are being hyper-alert about anyone coming in to the area. They've got enough on their hands with those of us left who are less than stellar citizens of the community. 10 of our number have found themselves in the back of an RCMP cruiser after being caught stealing from the homes of evacuees. One idiot's entire back-seat was taken up with a TV. When he got pulled over it didn't take the officer long to realize he nabbed a perp.
Yet for every story of a bad deed done, there are hundreds that exemplify the goodness and kindness that Canadians have always shown in times of trouble. I thank them all.
As I've been writing this, yet another change in the weather. The breeze coming through my window is noticeably cool. The smoke has diminished considerably and the wind has changed direction. It is still gusty........and still manageable. What we don't want is to have our power knocked out by a falling tree as we have the suspicion that CFC will prevent Hydro from hooking us back up so they can evac us out. There are probably a hundred Hydro trucks in the area. The Island alone sent us something like 30 of them. But we believe CFC will not allow the power back on as they want us out of their hair. There is absolutely no reason other than for health reasons due to the smoke, for those of us remaining, to leave. We are determined to stay until we know there is no other choice and that would mean the fire has finally come for us too. That, even with very strong winds will still take a few days. So, if you are praying for us, pray that the power stays on and the winds die down.........oh and if you have time, that we don't see a lick of lightning.
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