Home, at Last

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Steve and Diane Ron lost their Rancho Bernardo home during the 2007 firestorm. County News told their story in the spring of 2008. Now, the Rons have finally moved into their new home. Steve Ron, Project Manager in the Department of Public Works, and Diane Ron, Appraiser III, in the Assessor, Recorder, County Clerk's Office, provide an update, telling their story here in their own words.

Little was left of the Rons' Rancho Bernardo property after the Witch Creek Fire burned through the neighborhood.

Two years after losing their home, the Rons have moved into their newly built house.Dorothy was right: “There’s no place like home”. It’s been two years since our house burned in the 2007 Witch Creek Fire and we’ve been on a roller coaster ever since. We recently moved into our new house and none of the disappointments and setbacks matters any more. We still don’t have furniture or landscaping, and our windows are covered by brown construction paper, but we’re “home”, and that’s all that matters. Here’s our story.

We were in Michigan at a funeral when we first heard about the fire in Ramona. We felt safe because it had a long way to go to reach our house in Rancho Bernardo, but it did. It even jumped Interstate 15, which we were sure would be a fire break. Lesson learned: build wider freeways.

Our daughter was home watching our dog and she saved his toys and food. All of our stuff burned. Lesson learned: dogs rule.

We had a videotape of our household possessions and backups of our hard drive, which were next to the computer, so they burned too. Lesson learned: save backups somewhere else, like cyberspace, where the risk of burning is much less.

Since we were so used to providing customer service to others as part of our jobs, it was very strange to be on the receiving end at the Fire Assistance Center. We learned more about erosion control than we ever wanted to. Who knew fiber roll came in so many colors?

It took a year to negotiate a settlement with our insurance company, which was about average in time. We’re convinced Steve’s DPW negotiations experience with consultants and contractors on scopes of work and change orders, and Diane’s experience with assessments helped reach the insurance settlement.

It took another year to design and build the new house. This turned out to be a “design-build” contract, which is completely different from the separate design - low bid process used at DPW. Not surprisingly, the entire house design/build process was nerve racking beyond description. Lesson learned: thank goodness Diane has a sense of color, because Steve’s choices would have been horrible.

Our first landlord kept part of our security deposit. We took her to small claims court and won. She appealed and we partially won the second trial in Superior Court. Lesson learned: watch more Judge Judy.

The fire burned our neighbor’s house and the wood fence between our lots. Without a fence we had a great view, but the neighbor built a solid wall which took the view away. He wouldn’t compromise, even though he has a view fence on the other side of his property. Lesson learned: some people are irrational.

There is one more serious lesson: check your insurance, especially Coverage A, which determines all the other coverages.  Pay for an estimate to rebuild your house and videotape everything in and on your property.

Other County workers also lost their homes in the fires, and we expect they would agree it’s very difficult to describe the stress during the last two years. Fortunately, the people we work for were most understanding, which we greatly appreciate. The encouragement from strangers and friends is a blessing for which we are truly thankful. And we’re home, which is all that matters.

County Provides H1N1 Vaccine Through Mass Clinics

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The Health and Human Services Agency is holding vaccination clinics that will be open to the public based on vaccine availability. These clinics will be located throughout the county. If your medical provider does not have vaccine for H1N1 flu, or if you do not have a regular medical provider, you may obtain your vaccine at one of these sites.  Scheduled mass vaccination clinics are listed below. 

Friday, Jan. 15
3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Ronald Reagan Community Center
195 East Douglas Ave., El Cajon, 92020

Saturday, Jan. 16
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Kimball Senior Center
1221 D Ave., National City, 91950

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Westfield Plaza Camino Real
2525 El Camino Real, Carlsbad, 92008 

The County's first mass vaccination clinic was held Friday, Jan. 8 at Qualcomm Stadium. CTN.org was there.

Get What You Pay For When Buying Firewood

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 One of the best parts of winter is getting cozy by the fire. 

And as we get into the cooler part of the year, people are using their fireplaces more often. Yet  buying firewood can be a challenge if you do not know how to measure what is being sold.

“People may not realize that a cord is the standard measurement for firewood. Vendors must sell firewood by the cord or fractions of a cord. Our inspectors regulate the method of sale for firewood to make sure sellers are following the law,” said Robert Atkins, County Sealer of Weights and Measures.

A cord is equal to 128 cubic feet, measuring four feet wide by four feet high by eight feet long when the pieces of wood are stacked facing the same direction with as little space as possible in between the logs. California law prohibits the following terms of measurement from being used in advertising the sale of firewood: truckload, pallet, face cord, rack, rick, tier or pile.

Tips for buying firewood and storing it safely include:

  • Get a receipt or invoice, including the seller’s name and address, date of purchase or delivery, the quantity and price. Also note the license plate number of the delivery vehicle.
  • If there’s a mistake with your order, contact the seller before you use the wood.
  • If the problem cannot be resolved, contact the County of San Diego Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures at (858) 694-2739 or visit the department's Web site.
  • Store firewood at least 50 feet from your home and clear flammable vegetation within ten feet.
  • To keep rodents out of your woodpile, stack it at least 18 inches above the ground and 12 inches away from walls and fences.

H1N1 Vaccine Now Available to Everyone

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With demand from high-risk groups declining and supply steadily increasing, the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency announced today that the H1N1 vaccine will be available to everyone starting tomorrow. 

“We have been closely monitoring the demand for H1N1 vaccine and have seen a decline in interest from the priority groups at our Public Health centers and in the community,” said County Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten.

“While there is not an unlimited supply of vaccine available, with the decline in priority groups’ interest and increased supplies available, vaccinations are now open to non-priority groups who want protection against the H1N1 virus," Wooten said.

More vaccine is now available and additional shipments are expected in the coming weeks.

County residents are encouraged to contact their primary care physician since private providers receive most of the H1N1 vaccine. Residents who don’t have a primary care physician or whose doctor did not order H1N1 vaccine can get vaccinated at one of the County’s seven vaccination sites or at evening and weekend clinics conducted by local community health centers. Clinic hours may vary.

To date, 833,090 doses of vaccine have arrived in the region and another 88,900 doses are expected in the next two weeks. Currently, the County has approximately 12,000 doses that will be available at the seven public health clinics and is expecting an additional 12,000 doses. The County is also anticipating the arrival of 25,000 doses for distribution at school vaccination clinics.

Also, the California Department of Public Health has announced that phase three of vaccine distribution will begin in January. At this time, approximately 6 to 7 million more doses will be coming to the state, on average 8 to10 percent of the state’s allocation comes to San Diego.  From this order, the County will plan to conduct mass vaccination clinics in mid to late January. Subsequent orders will allow for retail pharmacies and all vaccinators registered with the State to begin offering the vaccine.

“During the planning stages, we estimated that 1.7 million comprised the five priority groups and that about 50% would be vaccinated. We have reached this estimation,” added Wooten.

For more information on vaccine availability and vaccination hours, visit www.sdcounty.ca.gov or call 2-1-1.

County Opens New Medical Examiner & Forensic Center

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The Board of Supervisors and Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Glenn Wagner today opened the County's new, state-of-the-art Medical Examiner & Forensic Center in Kearny Mesa.

“This is critical public infrastructure designed to meet the region’s changing needs for decades to come,” Jacob said. “The center can accommodate a large-scale disaster while prioritizing compassion for grieving families.” Take a look.

The 84,000-square-foot facility at 5570 Overland Ave. includes a Bereavement Center, expanded toxicology lab, teaching classroom and electronic touch-screens at exam stations to better manage cases.

The center meets silver-level LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

“Everyday, there are tremendous developments in the forensic sciences. We now have the space to harness those breakthroughs to solve crime, find answers, track trends of disease, trauma, drug addiction and better serve the public,” said Dr. Glenn Wagner, Chief Medical Examiner.

The Board of Supervisors budgeted $85 million for the project; the project came in on time and under budget at $73 million. The County paid for the project in cash. It is the first building to be completed within the larger County Operations Center campus currently under construction.

“Every case is special; it is that person’s last opportunity to tell of their death and their life— a story certainly worth hearing and learning from,” Wagner said.