Glass Fire: A Charred Piece of Music

Driving down the road into my grandparents’ driveway, the smoke was so vast the hills were unrecognizable. As I stepped out of the car, a piece of charred sheet music floated down to the ash-filled pavement.

   The Glass Fire is raging through both Sonoma and Napa Counties as of early Saturday morning(9/27). The red flag conditions contributed to the cause of the fire. California residents are no strangers to fires as recent fires have swept through neighboring areas. 

   The Glass Fire is unique as the territory burning has yet to burn in the recent fires. 

   The air quality in St. Helena has reached record levels due to the glass fire. Over the past week, Purple Air reported numbers above 500 in the town of St. Helena.

   Multiple economic powerhouses in the area have burned down, Newton family winery and Meadowood Resort are two significant losses. 

   Evacuation orders are still in effect in parts of St. Helena, for most families have been displaced for over a week now. 

   Driving through the empty town was eerie. St. Helena looked and felt like an apocalyptic movie scene.

   The embers flying around and landing on the ground made the fire realistically scary. In my grandparents’ back yard, I was able to find embers that most likely came from a burnt house. A piece of sheet music and pages from a novel in a foreign language floated into the backyard of my grandparents’ house. 

The importance of fire safety is more prevalent than ever before since red flag warnings are expected through October.