The Aftermath of the Saddleridge Fire
Experiencing this fiery event gives me a unique opportunity to extract lessons and draw conclusions to the business we are in at Wealthy Affiliate.
This hill bordered by Saddle Ridge Road is where the Sylmar fire of October 10th 2019 originated. Hence, the press called it the Saddleridge Fire. The aftermath for our group of around 200 homes was better than we could have hoped. Only one home closest to the starting area had its porch burned. All the other homes appeared to OK, including ours.
The firemen did an awesome job. However, the embers from this fire spread to the west and created havoc for much larger neighborhoods in Granada Hills and Porter Ranch who suffered far more then us.
We were able to return to our homes on the afternoon of Friday the 11th. Our dogs were happy to be taken back home. Our cats were OK but complained about leaving them alone. We're forgiven now!
After the Fire
The following pictures show the aftermath of fire across the street and behind our home. You will notice that only the hillside and brush got burned, The homes were intact thanks to the efforts of the firefighters.
Our home not only faced the fire but the embers flew over to the hill behind our home and charred the hillside below as shown by this picture taken after returning home. Fiery embers landed on our roof too. But our home didn't catch on fire. Fortunately the only damage we sustained was the bush in our front yard that got burned before we evacuated
Why was it that where we live has exposed us to so many fires yet we always come out just fine? The only damage seems to be the countryside getting burned but not our homes?
There are three big reasons why:
- Our homes were built using fire resistant stucco and concrete tile roofs. Fire hydrants were originally installed on many of the properties including ours.
- We have always got a speedy response from the fire fighters who were able to use the fire hydrants to hook up their hoses and be prepared to protect our homes.
- The homeowners look out for each other and are able to evacuate fast.
How can I apply this to our business? It's pretty simple really.
- We must build our businesses with a strong foundation and protect it from outside forces that try to tear it down.
- When we do have problems, having access to solutions that are available on this platform will help us keep our efforts and our businesses intact.
- The Wealthy Affiliate environment encourages us to look out for each other and help wherever we can. We also need to be flexible enough to recognize when we are going down the wrong path it is necessary to make the changes to stay on track.
We cannot insulate ourselves from bad things happening, like the fire we just experienced. But we have to be prepared to handle adversity when it arrives. And adversity happens to everyone. Even those who are most successful.
One of the reasons why they are successful is they do not give up. Instead, they look at adversity as learning experiences and use their imagination and inventiveness to work around the obstacles.
I pray that none of you will experience the kind of disasters we are prone to in California. However, being able to come through disasters makes us even stronger so that we accumulate the insights and tools to be even more successful.
Perhaps in the grand scheme of life, having problems is not such a bad thing after all!
I wish you all the best.
Edwin
Recent Comments
81
That is a phenomenally scary thing to have happened to you, regardless of steps put in place, seeing the fire rage around is horrifying. One of the few upsides to living in our damp wet and often cloudy country are we rarely suffer with Acts of God, or fires and the like... flooding....well yes, rock erosion along the coast definitely but nothing as horrifying as the Californian fires.
I like how you turned a potential disaster into s positive, like your spirit Edwin, and love love your dogs. ❤️
Hi Cordelia,
I had the good fortune if you could call it that of being interviewed by several news agencies and my description of the event, Curtain Of Fire also spread like wild fire lol.
Google Edwin Bernard and the Saddle Ridge Fire and see what pops up. I think you will be surprised. I know I was!
Thanks for your kind thoughts and caring. I used to live in London, Liverpool and Manchester and so have experience with the wet weather. I love England no matter what the weather. In winter I loved the Cadbury's commercial of a lady rushing home with a brolly over her head with the words in the background whispering Hot Chocolate Drinking Chocolate over and over again until she opened the door of the house and someone offered her a mug of Cadbury's Hot Drinking Chocolate! It's amazing what sticks in one memory.
All the best to you.
Edwin
Loved that reply,
so you lived and liked it here?
Yeah i too like living in the UK
I remember that advert you mentioned it gave such a feel good factor...🤗fancy you remembering that advert!
I am now heading over to google to search Edwin and Saddle Ridge Fire 👍
So glad it’s worked out well Edwin. Amazing to have a first hand account from all this way away.
I know right? If you want to see how far my words have spread, especially the Curtain of Fire term I created, Google Edwin Bernard and the Saddleridge Fire. My interviews had also spread like "wild fire" lol.
Glad its over and we are back home.
All the best to you.
Cheers.
Edwin
You're very welcome. Google Edwin Bernard and the SaddleRidge Fire and see what pops up. My phrase Curtain of Fire has been adopted as a headline by several news agencies. That was a lot of fun.
Glad that we are back and all is well.
All the best to you.
Edwin
Edwin,
First off I am very glad you and your Family ( including Dogs and Cats of cause ) are o.k.
I liked the way you are taking life experiences and attach them to what we are building here at WA. I two am a person that takes any experience and turns it into a lesson I believe that it is healthier for your mind to take a bad situation, look at it and ask yourself " what was the lesson" rather than sticking your head in the sand and feel sorry for yourself.
Wishing you all the best and much success
Andrea
Hello Andrea, I was so pleased you liked my analogy. While at the evacuation center I got interviewed a lot and my phrase Curtain of Fire has been adopted by so many news agencies to describe the Saddle Ridge Fire. Glad that it is pretty much over now.
However, as long as there are high winds, dry brush, low humidity and a spark, fires can happen again. At least there will be no fuel to spread the fire where we live right now.
All the best to you.
Edwin
Edwin,
Good to hear you did not sustain serious damage. Thank you for the analogy!
Chris from Texas🤠
Thanks so much for your kind thoughts. Each State has it's own share of disasters. Life goes on.
All the best to you.
Cheers!
Edwin
*** hi Edwin! ... whew! ... what a relief! ...
thank goodness you're all ok and 'protected' ...
keep well, keep happy & safe!
thanks kindly for being here & posting today ...
blessings for a smooth re-settlement ... 🙏 ... ***
Hi Keishalina,
Besides the fire I also experienced something else that was exciting. I got interviewed for live TV on ABC Channel 7 and was interviewed by several news agencies. If you Google Edwin Bernard and Saddleridge Fire you will find loads of articles quoting the words I coined Curtain Of Fire! My interview spread like a "wild fire too"
Back to reality now lol.
Edwin
hey the 'famous' Edwin Bernard' Brand is here!
wow -- that's amazingly wonderful news -- YOU ROCK STAR!
ok -- i'll go check it out ... cheerio ... ⭐️😊⭐️
Edwin, I enjoyed your post. I'm happy you and your family were not harmed and your house was not destroyed. Good luck
Thanks so much Ronald. While at the evacuation center I was interviewed by several reporters and even got on the ABC Channel 7 news live. I described the situation as a Curtain Of Fire. Hence I have been quoted a lot by other news agencies.
Cheers.
Edwin
Love the comparison between home fire safety and building a solid business. I am glad you suffered no damage from this terrible fire.
Thanks so much for your kind comments. I was talking with some neighbors and we are all glad that we could return to find our homes intact. Vegetation will always grow back. All the best to you.
Edwin
Edwin,
Fantastic news and great insight. I'm sure the saplings of vegetation will appear soon in the scorched earth and you're life and business will be stronger for the experience. You are absolutely correct about teamwork. Here's to a prosperous future.
All the best
Peter
Peter,
Indeed they will. Our mountain has been ravaged by fire many times and new growth always returns. The rainy season when it arrives will help.
Edwin
See more comments
So glad you are OK, I have another friend up there named Tony Blake, yes that one. He's made millions online as an affiliate marketer and may have lost everything, he doesn't know anything yet other than he's safe as of the last update but the fire was close. We pray for all affected in the fires.
WOW Andy, is that for real? Is he a member of WA? That is so sad :(
We were very fortunate and so grateful for it. I was interviewed by several news agencies and my words have spread like wild fire. I coined the term, Curtain Of Fire" and that has been used all over the place, linked to my interviews.
I only wish I can leverage this phenomenon to boost my Affiliate Marketing . articles.
Just Google Edwin Bernard and the Saddle Ridge Fire and you'll see what I mean.
Tell Tony Blake how sorry I am for his loss.
Cheers.
Edwin
He still has yet to post an update but he is good at leaving folks in suspense. I don't know if he was ever a WA member but he did use blogs as well as Pay Per Click and later added his own products through ClickBank to rocket his career. He's really down to earth and has jumped out of Affiliate Marketing to run a chain of high-end Cigar Shops and travel as he pleases.