It’s a good day to make a big pot of stew or soup. I did that last weekend after stopping at Julia Humphreys’ house and smelling the coq au vin she was cooking. I had a chicken in my freezer, and decided to make the same thing. Easy peasy. Chicken. Onions, shallots, and garlic. Carrots. Potatoes. Rosemary. Parsley. Pour a bottle of red wine over the whole thing, put it in a crockpot or the oven, covered, at 300 or 350, and forget about it for the rest of the day, or several hours, at least. It was delicious, and fed us three meals.
I have been obsessed with television coverage of the wildfires in LA. Watching them spread really scared me, thinking about what if it happened here. West Tisbury is in the center of the Island, and abuts the State Forest. It’s often windy, and we have our share of droughts. Our Island is relatively small, less than the square mileage the LA fires already burned.
Seeing how fast the fires came up and spread made me realize we would have to pick up and walk out the door with little warning. If Mike and I got out with Abby and Nelson, that would be my bottom line; I couldn’t leave my animals. Or my husband, but he would be the one organizing everything. Then he reminded me that he would be out fighting the fire.
Being married to a fireman has given me perspective, and a lot of information about what they are facing in LA, and what we would face here. Mike has provided a running dialogue about the colors of smoke, toxicity of different materials, capacity of tankers, water pressure, how many gallons per minute hoses can spray, where to get water. We don’t have a hydrant system, or generators adjacent to every hydrant we do have. It would be impossible to get help from other departments; they couldn’t drive across water, after all.
Could we take our vehicles? Probably not. Mike’s work truck has his tools, so that would be the most practical. What else? Wallets. Insurance, Social Security, tax records. Medications. Dog and cat food. Water. Clean clothes. Masks or respirators. My pillow and quilt. Should I keep two bags by the door? In the car?
I was touched when watching a man riding away from his house in LA with two paintings in one hand, awkwardly trying to steer his bicycle. A newsman offered to take the art to safety and told him where he could pick it up. Would I be able to take any of my art? My books? Realistically, grab the cat and the dog, my purse, and walk out the door.
Then what? Where would we go? Does the Steamship Authority have a plan for evacuating Islanders in an emergency? What if the fire blocked off access to Vineyard Haven? Gridlock is assured. Bad enough this time of year, but what if it was summer? I think I’m having a panic attack.
This is clearly something we need to address.
If you have any West Tisbury Town Column suggestions, email Hermine Hull, hermine.hull@gmail.com.