When we cleared our lot I had a huge pile of Yaupon and burned the stuff out in the unfinished culdesac. I was never so glad as to see that explosion burn down and I though it never would. After that I bought a chipper.
Sorry you went through that. It’s a tough deal.
That’s another hazard I’d forgotten. Falling into one of those underground fires is a bad deal, to say the least. The ground on top seems fine and suddenly you are up to your waste in hot coals.
It’s great you are chipping and creating defensible space. It’s the primary reason we survived our fire. However, we had 80 MPH winds and the stuff we chipped in place away from the structures was lighting off and flying by like tracer rounds. The road on the other part of the ranch they had coated with chips burned for a week, despite my efforts.
Chips are great in that you have rearranged the fuel, but depending where they end up, they can be a problem though far less of a problem than standing material. Good work.
It’s funny how an experience like yours changes your perspective, isn’t it? If you are anything like me, you now look at structures and almost immediately assess their survivability or defensibleness against fire. I look at certain neighborhoods in fear and certain roadways as scary or impossible passages were there a fire.
Glad you are well and pray you are never tested like that again.
Thanks for your story.