SPECIAL EDITION
n City Times’ Oct. 23 edition is included inside this issue. It was not distributed because campus was closed due to the countywide firestorm. This special edition was created off campus by dedicated City Times staff members after City College was closed.
CityTimes
www.sdcitytimes.com
Volume 62, Number 5
Covering the San Diego City College community since 1945
November 6, 2007
FIRES’ IMPACT REACHES CAMPUS n
City College closed n Coach loses home n Victims’ fund started Josie Salazar City Times
San Diego County’s worst Halloween nightmare became real the week of Oct. 22. An eerie reminder of the October 2003 Cedar Fire, this October’s firestorm has affected all areas of San Diego County, including the San Diego Community College District.. On Oct. 22, Chancellor Constance Carroll issued a series of statements on the District Web site regarding the closures of several campuses, in which Miramar was the first to close along with all the Continuing Education campuses in that area because of the threat of the fire and the continued road closures. “Although the other campuses do not appear to be threatened, we are watching the situations closely,” she wrote. Updates were posted throughout the day as the fire continued to pose continued threat to several of the district sites including Mesa and its Continuing Education complexes and the District Office departments. “We are taking these actions in order to ensure the safety of those who work and learn at the college. We wish everyone well,” Carroll wrote in a statement later that day. As the fire continued to threaten the air quality in the county, displacing several thousand residents and continued road closures, the decision to keep all district campuses closed all week came in a later update on Oct. 23. “As the fires continue to spread, as more and more people are displaced, and as the air quality steadily deteriorates, we have continued to assess the situation for our students, faculty and staff. We have decided to close the San Diego Community College District through Sunday, October 28,” Carroll wrote. Just like the Cedar Fire, this firestorm has destroyed numerous structures, injured dozens of people, killed several people and
RANDY PENCH Sacramento Bee/MCT Campus A San Diego Fire Department helicopter drops water on a hot spot near Escondido on Oct. 23. burned several thousand acres all across San Diego County. Although most of the eight fires, including those in other areas of Southern California areas such as Orange County and San Francisco, are mostly contained, some fires continue to burn. Cal Fire Capt. Don Camp confirmed that the Witch Creek fire, one of three major fires in the San Diego County area, was first reported at 12:35 p.m. on Oct. 21 starting in the North County in an area near the community of Ramona. On Oct. 22 the blaze jumped Interstate 15 and passed through the communities of Cuyamaca, Del Dios, Del Mar, Julian, Pine Hills, Poway, Ramona, Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Santa Fe, Rincon, San Marcos, Santa Ysabel, Wildcat Canyon, Wynola and parts of southern Escondido. Camp also confirmed that the latest statistics of structural damage is as follows, and may continue to grow by the time
the fire is 100 percent contained: 198,000 acres burned; 1,061 homes, 30 commercial properties, 175 outbuildings, 62 homes and 10 commercial properties damaged. Camp also confirmed that two people were found to have been killed because of the fire near Poway. Camp reported that the cause of the fire is under investigation, stating “we will thorough investigate any leads that come to us.” According to The San Diego Union-Tribune, the County’s second major fire, the Harris fire, also started on Oct. 21 reportedly at 9:23 a.m. near Potrero, near the U.S./ Mexico border. It continued to move near the communities of Barrett Junction, Carveacre, Deerhorn Valley, Dulzura, Engineer Springs, Jamul, Lawson Valley, Mount San Miguel, Tecate and the outskirts of Spring Valley and Chula Vista. Camp also confirmed the lat-
est statistics in the Harris fire, which are: 84,000 acres burned; 97 homes, two commercial buildings and 17 outbuildings, including 250 damaged homes. According to NBC News, the Harris fire has claimed the majority of deaths related to the county’s three major fires. Five people died, four that were found in a canyon near Potrero. Seven firefighters and 21 other people were also injured during the course of the week. The cause of the Harris fire is under investigation; however, Camp confirmed “… that it could possibly be due to arson.” The Poomacha Fire that later had combined with the Witch Creek Fire had started near the Palomar Mountain area, burned approximately 38,000 acres and 50 homes. Twelve firefighters were injured, however no deaths were reported. The cause of the fire appears to be a structure fire and is under investigation, fire officials reported. Other fires in the county
included the Rice Canyon Fire that started in the Fallbrook area, burning 9,500 acres, approximately 500 homes and two commercial properties and 20,000 avocado trees. There have been no reports of deaths. The cause of the Rice fire was due to a downed power line, fire officials reported. The Coronado Hills fire that started near San Marcos scorched 250 acres, but no structures were destroyed and there have been no reports of deaths. Fire officials said that the cause of the fire is also under investigation. The Horno fire near Camp Pendleton scorched 17,000 acres, but base officials reported that there were no damaged structures or injuries. Base officials confirmed that two smaller fires on base burned approximately 270 acres before being contained and no structures or were injuries reported. Officials said that the cause of the three fires is under investigation.