On Tuesday, MC students watched as smoke came up over the hills, near Del Norte High School and Stone Ranch Elementary, a brush fire broke out, a product of the wind and dry heat.
Some of the students here at MC experienced the danger of the fire firsthand.
“I got a call at the end of fourth period,” senior Matt Devine said. “I have fifth period off, and I usually go home […] but my mom called me and she said that we were evacuating.”
Disbelief was the first reaction for evacuees.
“I knew there was a fire in 4S, but I didn’t know it went all the way there,” Devine said. “I thought she might have been overreacting a little bit.”
Some families didn’t follow evacuation orders, holding onto the belief that the fire wouldn’t be a problem for them.
“We thought it wasn’t that close to our house, so when they told us to evacuate we just stayed,” junior Carlyn Bartick said.
However, reality sunk in when Santa Luz residents saw how close the fire really came.
“It was literally in my backyard,” Devine said. [It is] all burnt in this canyon below my house.”
Bartick experienced similar conditions, when the true seriousness of the situation became clear.
“Police came and were banging on the door and made us go,” Bartick said. “I live on a hill in Santa Luz and [the fire] was right at the bottom.”
San Diego natives are familiar with fires, like the 2007 Witch Creek Fire that affected much of the area.
“The 2007 fires were tragic,” Devine said. “Any fire in general, any natural disaster that could put someone’s life or home in jeopardy, it’s pretty crazy.”
Along with disasters come a sense of community and connection. Families and friends ca
me together to support each other in times like these.
“Everyone kind of came around and helped each other out, and that was really cool,” Devine said.
Despite some damage to properties and homes, no people were injured, thanks to San Diego firefighters and first responders. Although we suffered many damages, including the 8,000 acres of land lost in the Cocos fire and the one life lost, luckily our local heroes prevented any further damages.
Many fires occur in southern California but as a community San Diego is one to support each other and become the strongest when the times are toughest.