The danger in fire!

...03/24/02: there have been several fires burning in SE New Mexico...they are named the Kokopelli, 5-2 & South Bull, based on location...the winds have proven to be a major obstacle, with an advisory of gusts to 50 mph during mid-afternoon of 3/24/02, decreasing by evening...1300 residents have been evacuated from Ruidoso...the Guadalupe mountains could see winds gusts up to 60+ mph...these blazes have occurred 3 weeks prior to the actual start of fire season...one of the areas affected is the Mescalero Apache Reservation...10,000 acres have burned at the 5-2 site...the worst fire is Kokopelli...the winds calmed during the evening of 3/23-3/24/02, but increased at sunrise...during the night, there were brush & grass fires...morning brought a return to trees igniting...the fireline had slowed down near Ranch Ruidoso...many homes are vacant, since they are mostly summer vacation rentals...one of the people fighting the fire lost his home...so far, no major injuries or loss of life...30 house were destroyed...the South Bull fire has been contained; 100 acres burned...the fire and winds prevented the governor from arriving earlier than 3/24/02...the fire started in a residental area, but the "why" factor is unknown (see below)...the area affected includes the Lincoln National Forest, Ruidoso, Cloudcroft, Alto, Devil Canyon, Lower Eagle Creek, High Mesa, Rancho Ruidoso; this area is under and Extreme Fire Danger...SR 220 & SR 48 are blocked...this fire could be as deadly as the Cerro Grande disaster in 2000, which did major damage to the Los Alamos area...it has been over one month since ABQ has had any measurable precipitation...

...3/24/02: speaking at a Ruidoso news conference, Governor Johnson says the fire appears to have started when someone dumped ashes from a home fireplace in a back yard...the blaze in the Mescalero area is burning wildly, but is presently not a danger to people or property...the Kokopelli fire had been contained by the afternoon...

...late 3/24/02: the governor has declared a state of emergency as fires are reborn, and 2 additional ones begin...the situation is now worse than yesterday, and there is uncertainty on when the danger will end...they are small and should be easily contained...one of the causes is someone throwing ashes out a window...some of the homes are valued at $1 million...the town of Hondo is being evacuated...10,000+ acres have now burned...and, of course, this has made national news, emphasizing the drought conditions that exist across the country...by the afternoon of 3/25/02, the fires had been basically contained, and are basically extinguished...but people are scanning the area to prevent another fire from starting in the dry brush...still no injuries reported...homeowners can return to their communities, except for Hondo where fires burned into 3/26/02, but have also been contained...outside burning has been prohibited throughout the entire state...the fire danger is extreme!...3/27/02: a fire at Barley on the Jemez Pueblo, is quickly contained...3/28/02: a new fire, near Guadalupita in Mora County, named the Abner fire...it has burned close to 100 acres & 2 structures...by the weekend it too was contained...4/1/02: another fire, the Bosque is burning near Belen...named the Chavez fire, it has burned 400 acres...4/4/02: 80% contained...lack of rain, lack of food for bears...need to travel further for food, which means getting closer to cities, if necessary...a fire forecast is added to the morning news program...this is the driest season in 2 decades...however, homeowners are not fireproofing their houses or cleaning away brush...4/3/02: the Dixon fire, now contained, burned 10 acres...

...4/3/02: another fire, called the Pueblito, it is south of ABQ...4/4/02: add to the list the Middle Fire, burning in Gila Natl. Forest in SW NM...over 20,000 acres have been burned...it is approaching homes...the fire started on 3/31/02 ...cause: lightning...air tankers dropped 76,000 gallons of fire retardant...so far, no injuries...by midday of 4/5/02, over 35,000 acres had burned...the Corn & Wheat Belts need 30-40 inches of rain...in Feb., there were 26 dry states; in April, there are 36...drought conditions have spread over one-third of this nation...

...4/5/02: 3 brush fires east of Raton...again, no structures are threatened...their sizes are 5, 40 and 240 acres, all of which are 100% contained by 4/6/02...that same day, Santa Fe reached the third stage of water rationing; people can water outdoors only once a week...there are four levels for drought conditions, with 1 being the least and 4, the most...the Middle fire will burn into the second week in April...it was 40% contained...37,000 have burned...good luck arrived in the form of rain, snow and hail (golf ball size) on 4/6-7/02...400 firefmen from across the country are helping to put out this blaze...however, the winds began increasing as well...as of now, there are no fires allowed in any forest, and smoking is also prohibited...no cliff dwellings are threatened in the Gila Natl Forest...it is mainly a brush fire...3 acres burned near the Jemez Pueblo, it was 100% contained the same day...there is the smell of rain in the air...there is also a T-storm watch near Carlsbad & Hobbs...there could be snow in the higher mountains across the state...and it rained in ABQ from 4/6-7/02, with a few claps of thunder on Sunday PM...this is the first measurable rain since 2/18/02!...4/7/02: there are 6 fires in the Gila Forest, mostly small (3 - 5 acres) in size...but the big fie is 40% ccontained...the cost of these fires have reached $1 million...there was also a 5 acre blaze in the Lincoln Forest, but it is 100% under control...

...4/15/02: Pojaque Pueblo fire burnt 20 acres and 1 barn...people were evacuated from a nearby trailer park, but allowed to retrun home during the early morning...the blaze is contained, but hot spots might flare up, so people are on patrol...mostly grass, sagebrush & cottonwood burned...

...Ann loves to watch tornados...she thinks she saw one on 3/23/02 south of ABQ near Los Lunas...she has both tornado movies (Twister and Night of the Twister), and watches TV programs on that topic...3/30/02: there were 14 tornados reported in TX...4/12/02: there were tornadoes sighted in NE NM, but no damage reported...

...3/25/02: a 5.9 earthquake of 5.9 struck Afghanistan, at least 1,000 presumed dead...land scattered with mines, making it difficult to search and provide aid to victims...3/31/02: 4 people are known dead as a result of a 7.1 tremor in Taipei, Taiwan that struck in the early morning and lasted about a minute...

...ET Go Home!...Blade 2 is the movie to see...so is Panic Room...the 20th anniversary remixed enhanced celebration special version of the space traveler flick fizzled at the box office...go phone home...now...A Beautiful Mind & Lord of the Rings are stilling drawing audiences...there are trailers for the next episode, The Two Towers, to be released around Christmas, 2002...

...3/26/02: learned how to access MOZART transcriptions and determine ICD codes from the actual dictation...that same day Captain brought in a live bird...his prey flew to various bookcases until it perched on the high windows in the living room...sometime before Friday it decided to leave...4/3/02: learned how to code neuropsycological charges...also gained access to Cerner and PowerChart...

...according to Mr. Eckhart, "eggs, bacon, cream & cheese are Satan's four food groups", lots of fats & cholesterol, which translates to pasta a la carbonarra...

...Easter, the time for the pilgriamages from Espanola, Nambe, ABQ & Santa Fe to Chimayo...Rosanne gave her workers Easter candy...she was out on Good Friday...

...4/2/02: told that I was not picking up forms in the Neonatology Area...Ann could verify that I had, since she is the only person currently who can process these charges...so I did the Rounds for a second time, and could not find additional billing sheets...the answer: there is a second pickup area, which was unknown to Ann (and yours truly)...so this new location was added to the route...the charges were not old, but it wouldn't sound so important if the entire truth were told...all this info was discovered second hand, since someone in that area contacted the wrong manager...this occured less than one week after Ann & I decided to visit that area every other day...Rosanne reassured me that I was doing a good job...then there was the farce of trying to refill Combivir & Viread, and the battle of the phone calls & the E-mails between myself, my doctor's nurse and Walgreens'...it took over a week to settle this matter...and to determine if ALTACE is causing depression, reduce the dosage and see what happens...these are the words of wisdom from a doctor!...4/3/02: showed Ann how to design a poster, access Clip Art, create shapes, change their color and size of these objects...the colors of her racing car are purple (her favorite color) and black...4/6/02: Gov. Johnson will participate in a triathalon in late April...ABQ is the 25th largest school system in the country...the completion date for the Big I project is May 25, one month ahead of schedule...at that time the speed limits will increase on both interstates (to 60) and Paseo del Norte (to 50)...but additional work is underway that will keep construction crews busy for at least another year!...

...the last week in March, 2002 has been a week of sadness...Randy Castillo, a native of ABQ and the drummer for Ozzie Ozbourne & Motley Crew, died of cancer at the age of 49 (he succeeded in accomplishing a dream that he had had since childhood)...Milton Berle died at age 93...Dudley Moore, at 66 from a brain tumor...and Billy Wilder, the director of Some Like It Hot, at 95 from pneumonia...

...3/28/02: Ted asked if I had been cloned yet...I told it him the experiment failed, and cost too much money to try again...this has been a rough week for the body, mind & soul...

...3/30/02: the Queen Mother passed away peacefully in her sleep, having been beset with ill health since the Christmas holidays...born the Honourable Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon in London on August 4, 1900, she was the ninth child and fourth daughter of Lord and Lady Glamis of the Bowes-Lyon family, descended from Robert II, King of Scotland from 1371 to 1390, but still considered a commoner at the time of her wedding...she was 101 years old...she was on view in Westminster Hall, a 900+ year old structure...so many people have lined up to pay their respects that the church has been open 24 hours while she was there, which was until April 9...then a service was held at Westminster Abbey, followed by her burial at Windsor Castle, beside her husband, who died in 1951...