Originally Posted by
Viejo
The trash burned in the massive fire storm that raced through the area very soon after the fire started a could of miles below. There was a wall of flame that came up Swarthout Canyon that destroyed most homes and almost killed several firefighters. Pretty much the entire area is nuked for a few years and because fire was so intense, the Chaparral may type convert to something else. The heat did make much of the soil hydrophobic and the water now just runs off instead of soaking in.
Sadly, just minutes before the fire reached the lake, the last helo dipped water out and raced to try and save some houses up the canyon. The entire area was still covered with the trash of several decades till the fire hit. When you walk the ground now, you are amazed at the amount of broken glass.