Thank You, Lord!

We arrived home on October 29th, after being evacuated for 7 days. Exactly 4 years to the day, when our home in Cedar Glen was lost to the Old Fire in 2003 (see story below). We're all safe, however a little weary, and preparing for the work ahead. We got lucky...the power stayed on all week, and the house only suffers from a sweet smoky scent. Our newly purchased Oreck air purifier will be working overtime.

We awoke last week to the smell of fire and even though we live in a forest, where it's not uncommon to hear sirens and smoke sightings, the smell of smoke is cause for concern. Monitoring the Internet, the scanner and making phone calls gave us reason to prepare and pack the irreplaceables. Yes, there were some things we had to leave behind and it was hard to decide, especially when there is so much to think about.

Where are we going? How long will we be gone? Where are the pictures? What are you doing just sitting there? Why are you crying?

Grandma Debbie was visiting from Colorado, so we had the rare privilege of a third adult to ease the minds of the children and tell them, yes you can bring your stuff animals...plus, a third driver in order to take all our vehicles off the mountain. This also meant we could take more stuff! We "vacationed" in Palm Desert and tried to detach from the constant TV coverage, which only caused us to speculate even more. With all the other fires going on in So. Cal., it was unbearable trying to keep up with all...so, we played Monopoly.

The desert is a popular place for us mountain folk to retreat to during the winter months, and is becoming a natural place to run when there's an emergency. We saw some familiar faces and it made the time away from home, feel not so bad.

So, now were home and on to the work ahead...

Our Church Home

What was left of the original home of WJRB Consulting and, what really started the passion for Sustainable Building.

The fire started 5 days before it reached Cedar Glen and I was in Fullerton studying Building Information Modeling. On Friday, Katherine (my then future wife) called and said I'd better stay with Mom & Dad, for they're evacuating the mountain. Okay, I thought. The fire is far from the house and precaution is good...but the fire was only getting bigger and had already taken homes in Highland.

The classes ended, and the Old Fire had grown, now merging with the fire in Rancho Cucamonga. We watched as it crept up to over 9,000 ft above sea level to the top of Cucamonga Peak, a favorite destination as a young Boy Scout. The next morning (Monday) Dad and I set out to Cedar Glen, to see if we could reach my home before the fire did.

Retired from the USFS gave Dad some special privileges that few enjoy. We drove through CHP road blocks, rubbed elbows with U.S. Forest Service supervisors and waved at the San Bernardino County Sheriff deputies, chasing others off the mountain. It was great, but nothing greater than reaching my home and grabbing my computers so I could continue working.

My thoughts at the time: "I'll be back. We're far from the fire and it will have to go through Lake Arrowhead to reach Cedar Glen. The place will be fine." I left my American Flag flying...the one presented to me when I received the rank of Eagle Scout. Dad thought it would keep the place safe.

Driving off the mountain, I got the eerie feeling that this fire was really getting out of control. The sun was setting and the fire crews could only wait for it to climb to the ridge. Tuesday the winds picked up and blew it away from Lake Arrowhead, but it was blowing it to the East...this was bad!

That night the fire crews abandoned Cedar Glen. There was no way anyone could get down that canyon and safely return. They didn't even try. There was no way out, and I'm glad to say, no one lost their life trying to save any homes in Cedar Glen.

I first learned of the lost of the home the next morning. I remember the tears, the pain in my chest and all the air leaving my lungs in relief. The relief of knowing. Photos of my neighborhood appeared on the TV; The Internet; It was everyone's lips. Cedar Glen had burned.

When Kathy and I finally made it up, we thought we were prepared. Prepared knowing it was gone, but nothing can prepare you for the actual shock of that first look. The missing trees. The smell of burn. The lack of color.

Four years have passed, and visiting the site still feels eerie. It's sacred ground, which once was a happy place is now deserted and dead. The neighborhood has not been rebuilt, and for many reasons...lack of money, no infrastructure, inadequate water supply, no sewer, and stricter regulations are but a few.

But this is not the end for this little hamlet. A few are hopeful, including WJRB, that it will not only recover, but become a Sustainable Community. It's an opportunity for change and making it better than it ever was. Cedar Glen is rising from it's ashes of the Old Fire, and it will be remembered as the fuel that turned Cedar Glen Green.

Mountain Hearts & Lives coming together

Sustainability means to conserve, or in a building sense, preserving our natural resources by utilizing responsible building methods. Sustainability also means to maintain, or to keep what you have; to be self-reliant when disaster strikes.

The recent changes to the California Building Code (CBC), to be enforceable beginning in January of 2008, requires that any building that is built within any Fire Hazard Severity Zone is required to guard against flying embers from igniting the building.

What does this mean?

-- The Property must comply with the vegetation clearance requirements of Public Resource Code 4291 and Government Code 51182. That's an area between 30 and 100 feet from your home! This can be accomplished by having mature, native plants around your home, thus using less water.

-- The Home must be constructed of Ignition-Resistant Material on the exposed exterior surfaces. This would include Fire-Retardant-Treated Wood, or better yet, a composite siding made of a concrete product that resembles wood.

-- The Roof must be constructed using a noncombustible roof covering. This would include a metal roof, which is recyclable and made from recycled material.

-- The Roof Gutters shall be provided with the means to prevent the accumulation of leaves. This is very beneficial for the capturing of fresh rainwater.

-- The Windows must be insulating-glass units with at least one tempered pane and have a fire resistance rating of not less than 20 minutes. This also means high energy efficiency.

-- The Exterior Doors shall meet the fire resistance rating of not less than 20 minutes. This does not include the Garage Door.

-- The Decks and Exterior Stairs shall be constructed of Ignition Resistant Material, heavy timbers, fire retardant wood, or approved noncombustible materials. This would include any product made of a wood-polymer composite material, using only 50% wood fibers.

Other sustainable methods: Build only what you need, keeping your home small uses less energy; Install Rainwater Harvesting and store the captured rainwater in cisterns on-site; Build the exterior walls of concrete, the interior walls of steel, the roof of slate.

These are just a few examples of Building Sustainable, and Fire Safe.

Visit the Fire Safe Council

Mountain Hearts & Lives