Ernie Foss ^[2] (May 4, 1955 - November 8, 2019) was an American musician. He was the first victim of the Camp and Woolsey Fires, which has been reported as one of the deadliest fires in modern American history.^[3] He was bed bound and passed away next to his service dog Bernice as they attempted to escape, she sat by his side in service until his passing.

One of his songs was titled "Stuck in my bed blues".^[1]

Ernie was also a Disabled (Stage LLE 3) ADA advocate, Consultant, husband, father, and grandfather^[4]. Above all, he was someone that was taken from us too soon and should be remembered due to his creativity, talents and endurance until the end.

Ernie taught and impacted many people in the Haight District through his talents, charisma and music. It is also important to note the Paradise Fire was one of many which were found to be started due to faulty PG&E power line.

His daughter Angela Loo continues to bring awareness to people that could be impacted by fires.

Beyond that, she brings about the memories of who Ernie was and his teaching of music in their home on Haight Street.^[5] The family has filed a complaint against PG&E for Damages.^[5]

Unfortunately Ernie became a victim of rising Bay Area housing costs and had to leave San Francisco.^[6] He unfortunately became the very first victim of the Paradise Fire that happened on November 8th, 2018. Andrew Burst, his stepson and caregiver passed away was another victim from this deadly fire.^[7]

Many more stories are to follow, some of us have been building solutions to assist during emergencies, whether these solutions have been done through crowdfunding in cryptocurrencie, building universal lists that enable emergency personnel to provide services to those in need as well as informing family members of their loved ones conditions.

The Family set up a GoFundMe campaign for those that wish to help.^[7]