The number of people under mandatory evacuation in San Diego is now equivalent to Nebraska’s entire population….

10-23-07 11:21 a.m. Overall evacuation update. A total of 349,915 Reverse 9-1-1 and AlertSanDiego phone calls have been issued between the County of San Diego and the City of San Diego, informing residents of both advisory and mandatory evacuation orders. Based on 2000 census data, approximately 513,000 people in San Diego County have received a mandatory evacuation order and an additional 12,000 people have been advised to leave their homes.… Read More

As Duane Dichiara has noted in his posts below, downtown San Diego has been uniquely quiet the last two days. Although not threatened by fire, many of the folks who would typically drive in from other areas of the county are dealing with more significant issues than work, or their employers are closing operations for the time being. For good reason, as approximately one in six county county residents have been evacuated from their homes. The encouragement is to stay off the highways if possible.

Duane documents the empty nature of downtown withthe followingcouple of photos, taken at high noon, a good time for a ghost town … looking down Broadway, likely the busiest street in the area. And, although he has written for FR for nearly two years, he hasn’t yet learned how to post photos, so he asked me to do so. I am glad he can handle a camera.

… Read More

The freeways on the way downtown were wide open, at rush hour. From what I can tell downtown is largely shut down. Tourists and the homeless are just about the only people in the street. City buses and the trolly are stopping and no one is getting out or in. A dull haze hangs over the city, and the smell of smoke is everywhere. San Diego has ground to a halt.… Read More

Doing his best to prove there is a God, mean-spirited extremist Congressman Pete Stark took to the House floor today to stop the bleeding for House democrats by apologizing to his colleagues, the President and the troops. In his own words "I hope with this apology I will become as insignificant as I should be."

Pete Stark can never be as insignificant as he should be.… Read More

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders is encouraging residents and business owners to donate the following items in support of fire evacuation relief efforts at Qualcomm Stadium: prepared foods, packaged snacks, water, tents, cots and blankets.

All donations should be delivered to Gate P at Qualcomm Stadium.

If you know of anyone with a large surplus of blankets and/or cots, or a restaurant that wishes to donate food, please contact Scott Maloni at (858) 663-8838.

211 San Diego is also seeking volunteers to take on shifts to answer phones. Please call Megan at (858) 300-1240 to find out how you can help.

10:30 UPDATE: Del Mar evacuated… Read More

With all the trauma and loss in southern California because of the wildfires – I thought a little levity might help lighten things up. (no disrespect intended to those that have had their lives impacted by this tragedy) And when you’re looking for a good stand-up comedian in the spirit of Shecky Greene, look no further than our own Jim Brulte……..I know, I know, and you thought he was just a serious policy wonk.

Recently, Jim was invited to roast Governor Schwarzenegger at the governor’s fundraiser in Hollywood. He killed it.

The Master ofCeremonies was actor / comedian Tom Arnold.

Here is Jim’s stand up act – enjoy!

"Thank you, Tom, for that introduction.

And I guess I should introduce myself, since I’m not a nationally known celebrity like most of those on the dais. My name is… Read More

It’s our own Tab Berg and Steve Maviglio, Deputy Chief of Staff to Fabian Nunez. Perhaps Tab will let us know how this photo came to be! … Read More

Instead of a traditional commentary this morning, we want to use this space to ask FR readers to keep firefighters and other first-responders in their prayers as they are battling the staggering amount of wildfires throughout Southern California. As many readers know, my family lives in Irvine, California. Well, we are so close to one of the fires that ashes are all around the neighborhood, and the smell of smoke permeates everywhere, indoors and out. From where we are, the fire is just a couple of miles away, burning through the dense foliage on the north side of our town. Our friends, Dick and Linda Ackerman (yeah, the Senate Republican Leader) actually live about a mile closer to the fire than we do. I spoke with Dick and Linda several times last night, and with Dick this morning. They are safe, but of course we all get concerned when this kind of incident comes this close to our daily lives. This morning it was announced by authorities here in Orange County that the source of… Read More