As raging wildfires forced the evacuation of thousands of homes in Carlsbad, Calif., some of the biggest names in golf equipment also found themselves in harm’s way.
Carlsbad is home to the corporate headquarters of Callaway, TaylorMade-Adidas Golf, Titleist and Cobra-Puma Golf. Tweets from Chad Coleman, Callaway’s head of social media, show just how close the flames reached their buildings:
Not exactly what you want to see looking out the office window. Stay safe, Carlsbad. #Fire pic.twitter.com/JaF1FgK26s
— Chad Coleman (@HashtagChad) May 14, 2014
Unbelievable. These are not clouds. #carlsbad #fire pic.twitter.com/T0gpY01uUD
— Chad Coleman (@HashtagChad) May 14, 2014
It's not getting any better. #CarlsbadFire https://t.co/00LjRaiVkC
— Chad Coleman (@HashtagChad) May 14, 2014
The situation was equally serious at Puma, where Grant Knudson shared a picture of the billowing clouds of smoke:
Well the so cal fires are real. Real close. pic.twitter.com/2jb77WRLam
— Grant Knudson (@GrantKnudson) May 14, 2014
LPGA player Ryann O Toole also tweeted a picture of Aviara Golf Club in Carlsbad, where flames appeared to be encroaching on the course:
As of Wednesday evening, 23,000 evacuation notices had been issued in the San Diego area, where at least 20 structures had already been destroyed by a wildfire currently spanning more than 1,500 acres.