CZU Complex Fires + Evacuation

Photo by Liz Birnbaum, The Curated Feast

This photo was taken at 5:43 pm on August 20, at the Santa Cruz Harbor. A very strange first shot with my new Sony Alpha.

Santa Cruz, I am holding you in my heart. Thank you to everyone who checked in and supported me these last 2 days.

The love and appreciation I feel for the firefighters, emergency workers, and reporters fighting on the front lines of a true nightmare is flooding my whole body.

Yesterday I had full-body goosebumps as my neighbors and I watched burnt oak and bay leaves descend from the sky onto our front yard, black as night against a sky of orange. It’s been perpetual dawn for days. Frankly, it’s been terrifying.

We are feeling grief and terror watching the fires ravage our beloved Mountains and creep closer in, but as I watched people play or have dates on the beach today (I took a moment and walked down), my heart sank. PLEASE pay attention and help if you have not been doing so. I was sure this was collectively felt until today, when I realized soberly that it is not. Please pay attention, and please help. Link in bio for resources.

Yesterday I evacuated our office in Felton and my home in the Santa Cruz Hills, packing up a few boxes of belongings and my key camera equipment, and have landed in a safe home with a friend, near the harbor.

I love this town. This community. You.