Southern California Fires -- Live Thread 10/29

[TomGuy]

Can't tell. Are they both covering the Old/Grand Prix fires?

I'm not sure. MSNBC feed doesn't seem to have audio and the CBS webcam guy doesn't always give location. He did just say "What, 3 quarters of a mile from Van Nuis(?)" [I assume he means the fire is that close.]

[dogbyte12]

Van Nuys

It's a city in the San Fernando Valley.

[RayChuang88]

You know, one idea I've heard suggested that might actually work is to drop bombs or launch small rockets with warheads filled with liquid nitrogen (which is widely available since liquid nitrogen is widely used in commercial refrigeration). Essentially an endothermic device (which means it spreads extreme cold instead of extreme heat as you get from normal explosives), such a device could literally snuff out the fire since 1) it will immediately deprive the fire of its oxygen source and 2) the extremely low temperatures from the liquid nitrogen will also stop the fire in its tracks. Since nitrogen is a major component of Earth's atmosphere, using these devices will not have an effect on air pollution or global warming.

Imagine a C-130 dropping a modified BLU-82 Daisy Cutter bomb that has instead of the bomb filled with explosives a Dewar flask (essentially a giant Thermos bottle filled with liquid nitrogen) right on the fire. The endothermic effect from releasing all that liquid nitrogen could snuff out the fire on a pretty large radius from the point of impact.

[TomGuy]

Massive smoke plume shooting up.

[bonesmccoy]

[JHENN22499]

Smoke may be too dense with fog bank

[farmer18th]

TomGuy, where is that picture from?

[farmer18th]

I heard that one too. He mentioned by the "dump." Where is that?

[TomGuy]

[Below] The guy on the CBS webcam said it was "real weird; like being over a volcano or something."

[JHENN22499]

radio just said they are not using aircraft as they feel backburning is effective right now.

[TomGuy]

TomGuy, where is that picture from?

I'm not sure. It was from the CBS webcam, but I haven't heard them give a location. Earlier (an hour or so), they said something about being above Stevenson Ranch.

Burbank and Van Nuys airports down to less than 1 mile visability.
Copter is just above Ote(?) Mountain.

[JHENN22499]

keeping all the fires straight is tough when there is so much infor coming in, and I'm not familiar with the mtn names. I really feel for all of you suffering through this.
Prayers being said.

[farmer18th]

I haven't heard anything about the extents of the threatened areas, whether hesperia or Angeles Oaks on the other side. All the chatter seems to be about Running Springs.

[cartoonistx]

Here's today's burning issue cartoon!