Qualcomm Stadium was a focal point for many fleeing the fires in San Diego County. KPBS reporter Nicole Lozare spent Wednesday morning there.
At Qualcomm Stadium, evacuees can find hot meals. Diapers for their children. There's even a mountain of give-away clothes.
That's the necessary stuff.
Offered at Gate A and B? Acupuncture and massage for unwinding. Nearby is a clown painting children's faces.
But probably nothing can top Bandit.
That would be the Boston Terrier dressed in full motorcycle gear from doggie helmet to leather vest. He rides around the stadium on a miniature remote-control motorcycle.
Shaffer : It's been great. We were here last night for like four hours. The kids love him. He was like the little Pied Piper. Kids were following him. Taking pictures of him. Racing him. Running. It was great. It really entertained a lot of the people.
That's Bandit's owner Mike Shaffer. He says they just wanted to give evacuees something to smile about after such a rough week.
Betty Newell who evacuated from Rancho Bernardo says she is thankful.
She is camped out near other Rancho Bernardo residents. They've been very good to her, she says, even lining up for over an hour just to get the elderly woman warm food.
Newell : It's going to be an experience that I look back on and think of that it was wonderful to have that when things were very dark for most of us in here.
At its peak, Qualcomm hosted more than 12,000 evacuees. That number has been steadily declining.
Nicole Lozare, KPBS News.
