What happened in Rancho San Diego in the East County late last night happened quickly.
Just four hours after the Red Flag warning went into effect, flames, fanned by Santa Ana winds, were rapidly moving toward homes and the evacuations began.
People settling in for the night suddenly had to grab what they could and evacuate. There was little time to think about what to take with them as they moved to safe areas, leaving their homes and most of their belongings behind.
It is a story that has repeated itself time and time again here in San Diego County and up and down the state.
Emergency officials will tell you that what they worry about a lot is people being ready to evacuate within minutes of the order going out. Over the decades, they have seen many people who have not been as prepared as they could and should be to evacuate when brush fires break out.
They say a lot of people, even those who have lived in California for many years think that if a fire does happen, it won’t happen where they live and if it does, it probably won’t reach their home.
Anyone who may have had thoughts like that Wednesday night in Rancho San Diego probably isn’t thinking like that today. And probably will never again.
SEE KOGO News reports on Rancho San Diego Fire.
(Photo reporting partner 10News)