A Cal Fire helicopter through the smoke Friday over DeLaveaga Park.

Lookout PM: The spooky sight, smell of smoke & veteran homelessness at issue

By Mark Conley

Source: Lookout Santa Cruz

Good evening, everyone.

We’ve reached another weekend and the weather is looking gorgeous.

With many schools back in session or headed there Monday, and vacations tapped out, it might even have a bit of that magical fall feeling with fewer bodies on the beach and cars clogging up Highway 1.

No promises, of course, but we can dream a little.

And we deserve to dream after getting a taste — and, for those close enough, a smell — of our consistent fire season reality. This time-lapse gives you a good and eerie feel for our modern reality.

More on that and the other news of the day here...

Quick response stops progress on fire in DeLaveaga Park; cause under investigation

A Cal Fire crew on the scene of Friday's fire near the golf course at DeLaveaga Park.

A smoky reminder: First responders from Cal Fire and the Santa Cruz fire and police departments were on scene Friday in and around DeLaveaga Park after a wildfire broke out about 12:30 p.m. among eucalyptus trees in the park. Forward progress on the blaze, estimated at 3 to 5 acres, was stopped around 3 p.m. More on that scare here.

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Homeless vets were said to be a local success story. So why does the latest data indicate otherwise?

The scene on East Front Street in Watsonville.

Why? While support for homeless veterans has been robust at both the state and national levels, a recent survey done in conjunction with February’s one-day point-in-time count suggests that the situation in Santa Cruz County might not be as positive as local advocates believed. Was it an anomaly or is there a bigger problem to be addressed? Here’s what the experts say.

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