Another fire in Santa Cruz, this one hitting much closer to home. When it started yesterday afternoon, the huge plume actually appeared to be rising from campus. Even early news reports mentioned a fire "above UCSC," which is exactly how it looked, particularly from downtown Santa Cruz. Triggered by inquiries, the university's Public Information Office had to send out an email to all UCSC affiliates:

"UC Santa Cruz fire personnel have responded to a fire in the Bonny Doon area, reported during the afternoon of Wednesday, June 11. Smoke from the fire can be seen from parts of the UCSC campus. In fact, from some vantage points, the fire may appear to be on the campus. The fire is not on the UCSC campus. "

That parts of Bonny Doon should be ablaze wasn't exactly a relief, either, considering the number of homes there. My boss and her family live there. It even turned out that the fire had started very close to their property, and they soon had to leave, following mandatory evacuation alerts. She brought good news to work this morning. The wind had driven the fire away from their house, so it was spared. Let's hope this one's going to be contained fast. (Photos : Karen T. Borchers, / San Jose Mercury News,  Tony Avelar / San Francisco Chronicle via AP, andDoug Mollenauer)


Bonny Doon Fire_Moore Creek #3