Sunday, November 4, 2007

The Poomacha Fire

On the afternoon of the October 23rd. the Poomacha Fire burned through a canyon on the north edge of Ellis Farms on Highway 76 below Mt. Palomar. Flames burned a vehicle, some 140 avocado trees, and some nursery material. Our only colleague on the farm when the fire hit thankfully was able to evacuate safely. Compared to the devastating losses suffered by so many others, our scrape with the fire was minor.

As of this writing, the Poomacha Fire has burned some 50,000 acres and is now 95 percent contained. As most of us know by now, this fire was one front of the great firestorm that raged across southern California during the last three weeks. The Poomacha fire alone burned 138 homes, 1 commercial property, and 77 outbuildings—just a portion of the thousands of homes and businesses lost to the fires. Unlike in other areas, no lives were lost to the Poomacha. Fifteen of the some 1500 firefighters who fought the blaze were injured. The cost of this fire alone has been estimated at $15.8 million.

The overall impact of the recent fires on agriculture will not be sorted out for months. Some 5000 acres of avocados have probably been lost, in addition to citrus groves, egg farms, and plant and tree nurseries. The number of jobs lost has not, to my knowledge, been calculated.

On behalf of Ellis Farms, I would like to express my gratitude to the firefighters and other emergency workers who battled the recent fires, including the volunteers who helped in the shelter at the high school here in Borrego. I send my condolences to all those who suffered loss during the disaster. At Ellis Farms, we are both very thankful and humbled by the fires.