WARNING: Bovine Scat Directly Ahead!!!

July 18, 2008, about 3 pm...

The Monterey County Sheriff's Department, whose representatives have been attending every Community Fire Information Meeting, has listened to the wishes of us local folks. 

We wanted some kind of method to prevent non-locals - motorcyclists attending the event at Laguna Seca, the out-for-a-Sunday drivers and the like - from cruising their rice rockets down Carmel Valley road post-haste. 

On top of this, some folks (myself included) thought it would be a good idea if Cachagua Fire had the opportunity to handle the evacuation, since they know everyone and they'd be a bit more sensitive to the needs of locals.

Well, word is coming down from Cachagua Fire District that the Sheriff's office is responding to our concerns and in a rather interesting manner... and depending on one's point of view, the response could be interpreted as either:

1. a flip of the proverbial "bird" to Cachagua Fire and the Jamesburg Cachagua community; or, 
2. a thorough and professional response to the entreats of a beleaguered neighborhood, winding down from six days of a Mandatory Evacuation notice.
   

One thing's for sure... it'll be a pain in the tuchus, and be we'll probably be looking forward to waiting in a very long line outside the Ad Hoc Parking Lot that Sleepy Hollow's entrance will become.  Bake Sale for Sleepy Hollow scouting troops, anyone????

Here's the scoop:

The Resident Road Access Pass System:

Get out those driver's licenses, electricity and/or phone bills! What we need is a good old fashioned FORM to fill out, and a bureaucracy to sustain it.

Here's the Official Release:

Basin Complex Fire
Monterey Ranger District Los Padres National Forest
Monterey County Sheriff's Office

July 18, 2008, 2:00 p.m.
Resident Road Pass Issuance
Effective Friday, July 18, 2008 at 2:00 p.m. the following action will occur:

The Sheriff's Department will begin to issue road access passes to residents living in the vicinity of Carmel Valley Road and Cachagua Road.

The Monterey County Sheriffs Department is instituting a pass system to residents and their employees along Carmel Valley Road and Cachagua area. Residents living within the Cachagua Fire District can obtain passes from the Cachagua Fire Department. Residents living along the lower portion of Carmel Valley Road can obtain their passes from the California Highway Patrol officer situated near the junction of Carmel Valley Road and Arroyo Seco Road daily between 6:00 am and 8:00PM. Residents will also need to obtain passes for their workers.

These passes are only valid for travel restrictions during voluntary evacuations. Passes are not valid during mandatory evacuations. Only passes from the Monterey County Sheriff's Department are valid.

For Basin Complex Fire information go to http://www.inciweb.org/, or call the Monterey County Emergency Operations Center at (831) 796-1990 or go to their website at http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/.

__________________________________

Buy me a flute
And a gun that shoots
Tailgates and substitutes
Strap yourself
To the tree with roots
You ain't goin' nowhere

 - Bob Dylan

______________________________________

To Pass or not to Pass, that is the question....

July 18, 2008 about 10:30 pm...

Just got back home after the CV Tularcitos Information Meeting and audio post-production. The checkpoint at Sleepy Hollow was staffed, which was mysterious, since we expected that after 8pm, there would be no one staffing the checkpoint (this information came from Cachagua Fire, earlier in the day, and before the official notice was distributed).

Also, there was no indication that a pass was required... in fact the CHP officer told us that the checkpoint would be staffed 24 hours through the weekend to prevent motorcyclists driving the road willy-nilly. 

We were asked to show something with our address on it - we did, PG&E bill - and that was that. We asked, what about people working here who don't have an address verification. He said, "If they can tell us your street address, we'll let them by."

Ahh, the best laid plans of mice and men....