LATEST FIRE NEWS/ 3:40 P.M.

OFFICIALS CALL THIS THE WORST FIRE IN COUNTY HISTORY
By DAVID ROSS
Note: This Web site will be updated as events warrant.
10/22/2007 2:30 p.m.
As the most catastrophic fire in San Diego County’s history continues its westward march, Mother Nature is being a little more cooperative with those putting themselves in its path.
As many as 250,000 San Diego County residents have been evacuated from their homes and over 100,000 acres have burned.
About 22,000 peopl are without power
Meanwhile, The Roadrunner has been been informed that the National Guard has been activated for deployment in San Diego County.
Governor Arnold Schwarz-enegger today directed the California National Guard (CNG) to make 1500 guardsmen available to support the firefighting efforts in Southern California.
So far, Valley Center is untouched, although mandatory evacuations of the Bear Valley, Guejito, Paradise Mountain area have been conducted as a precaution to avoid a replay of the loss of life and devastation that happened there four years ago.
There is no fire on Lilac Road. Some residents have heard reports of a “Lilac” fire, but apparently that is a fire burning in the Fallbrook area. So don’t tie up phone lines calling the Valley Center fire department to ask about it!
Fire officials were also very concerned about the several hundred senior citizens in residence at the Skyline Ranch mobile home park. Four years ago the fire just barely avoided the park.
The Witch fire remains at the Guejito location and fire officials are hoping that the change of wind may cause the fire to double back on itself.
The local incident command is at the Sheriff’s substation on North Lake Wohlford Road.
This afternoon winds are not nearly as strong and visibility is good enough so that the tankers at Ramona Air Attack Base have begun flying again with their P3 Orions four engine air tankers and helicopters.
This will be a welcome sight for CalFire firefighters who have had to battle the blazes for 24-hours without air support due to high winds.
According to Valley Center CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Pres. Jim Courter, about a dozen volunteers are out at any one time.
They have been helping with the evacuation of Paradise Mountain and the Skyline Ranch trailer park.
The evacuation of San Pasqual Reservation was handled by Sheriff’s deputies and tribal firefighters.
Currently about 250 evacuees are at the evacuation center at Valley Center High School.
The San Pasqual Reservation has been evacuated. The decision was made by Tribal Allen Lawson.
Many of the tribe’s evacuaees, as well as senior citizens from Skyline Ranch, have ended up at the evacuation center.
The center is being run right now by volunteers from the school district, including High School Principal Ron McCowan and some of his staff. The Red Cross has been unable to send anyone yet. But several hundred meals from the Red Cross are on their way to the evacuation center.
Food is being provided by the school district’s food services organization and the food services department at Valley View Casino.
According to Courter, “The Red Cross is swamped right now. They have agreed to send fifty cots and some supplies and as supplies come from out of state they will send more.”
The Red Cross is looking at late morning on Tuesday before supplies start arriving.
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Schools will be closed countywide through Wednesday, according to Supt. Lou Obermeyer of the VC-Pauma Unified School Dsitrict.
There will be no CIF sports team practices through Wednesday.
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There is no mail delivery by the Valley Center Post Office today and tomorrow’s delivery will be evaluated and decided later by postal officials.
Mail trucks were turned away at the bottom of the Valley Center grade by the California Highway Patrol. This will also affect Pauma Valley and Palomar Mountain post offices.