The California Fires

[ashfire]

As a volunteer firefighter I feel sorry for the people that are losing their homes to the fires that are being fanned by the high winds up and down the state.
The firefighters are are doing everything they can to stop the fires but are so spread out trying to do it.
They have called for help from surrounding states and other organizations to get more personel and equipment to help.
I have seen on the news where citizens will stay to fight the fires around their homes and have to be forced by firefighters to leave. I have thought why don't more citizens try to form volunteer units to help the fire departments when situations like this come along.
There are CERTs (Citizen Emergency Response Teams) that back up the regular emergency responders that could be equip with fire fighting gear and equipment that could makeup extra manpower units and teamed with regular crews to attack the fires.
They could train once a week or twice a month with firefighters to keep their skills up and ready to go.
I guess I have learned that being able to help is better than sitting back and watch things turn to a big pile of ash.

[Esoteric]

I think one big reason that there aren't CERT's helping right now is the liability. They don't want civilians out there getting hurt or killed (because they weren't properly trained or equipped) and then take the political heat for it. Even the professional fires crews have been experiencing serious close calls (I'm aquainted with one on the Harris fire).
When we had the Cedar and Paradise fires 4 years ago, the forestry and fire depts. took MAJOR flak for not being prepared/cautious enough. So for these fires, they've been playing extra safe and evacuating people on the slightest chance of danger.
However, the good news is that winds are dying and the growth rate burn area has lessened considerably. It's my hope that they will able to start containing portions of certain fires today.

[mitsuki lover]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

[K. Ayato]

Does it really matter either way? Yes, my home state gets fires every year and not many make it to the news. The only reason they are being broadcast this year (as they were 3-4 years ago) is because of over 50,000 acres of land and property damaged, plus the Santa Ana winds, which until a few years ago would occur during the summer.

[Esoteric]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

Funny you should put it that way, the Malibu fire seems to have gotten way more attention than the just as devastating Witch/Guajito fire in San Diego.
Us San Deigan's actually feel somewhat ignored when it comes to national news coverage. 500,000 people have been evacuated in San Diego county alone. That's certainly news-worthy in any state.

[jon_jinn]

yeah. my sister, who's a sophomore at UC San Diego, had to evacuate. so she's home for a week. i'm actually happy about that cause i get to see her.

[mechana2015]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

I think any disaster that causes over a billion dollars in damage and displaces nearly a million people, requiring support from the army, marines and national guard to manage it is pretty newsworthy, no matter who lives there.

EDIT:
Also keep in mind the 40+ injuries, including 20 or so firefighters, not to mention the 5-7 deaths caused directly or indirectly by the fires.

EDIT 2: If this were the state of Rhode Island, about half the state would be incinerated.

[Cognitive Gear]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

Please don't trivialize this national disaster. At least one of the fires is suspected arson.

This is quickly becoming the largest fire on record. It's already the most expensive. We've been fortunate that so few have died in it. It's easily newsworthy in and of itself.

[mechana2015]

There are CERTs (Citizen Emergency Response Teams) that back up the regular emergency responders that could be equip with fire fighting gear and equipment that could makeup extra manpower units and teamed with regular crews to attack the fires.

The problem with this fire is that the CERTS would all have to be specially trained in extreme terrain and overrun techniques and supplied with fire shelters and training on how to use them. A lot of fire crews have had to go to these last ditch shelters in these fires because they got overrun, and honestly, thats a bad situation for professional firefighters with all professional gear, let alone volunteers who may or may not have trained with the gear recently.

[Nate]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

Wow. You must work really hard to say things this freaking inane. I give you...an A+ on speech. Or rather, an A+ on saying ridiculous things. And a solid F on saying anything of value.

Tell you what, when your house burns down in a fire, we'll be sure to treat you the same way, would that make you happy?

[Ingemar]

You know, I'd be happy to relay your little message to friends and coworkers who were displaced by the fires, mitsuki lover.

[lizzichan]

You know....as someone living in LA County I would have to say that nearly every year we get pretty bad fires here in Southern California...and they are all pretty well televised. This year we have had record breaking fires...record breaking evacuations and record breaking damage. It is very disconcerting watching the news and seeing that so much help had to be called in. I am lucky in that none of the fires were close to where I live...but, one of the managers at work was evacuated Monday and as of this morning still didn't know if she had a home to go back to. Other people at work were also in the same situation.
I couldn't imagine being in that predicament...
I actually havent seen the news since this morning, so I am out of the loop on what has been contained and such. But, compared to last night the air outside is pretty clear so I am assuming that the firestorm...at least in the areas around here, is over...or nearly so.

[KhakiBlueSocks]

I wonder though if the wildfires down in California would be this newsworthy(after all they do happen every year down there)if it weren't for the fact that so many people and especially so many famous people live in the region.

Who cares if it's newsworthy or not? At the time of this post, at least 6 people are confirmed dead, lots more are injured, and people's homes are destroyed. That's tragic no matter how much it's on the news.

That was completely uncalled for and insensitive.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Not to mention that there were other fires in the past (Like Chicago) that were highly publicized.

[Tenshi no Ai]

Yeah of course it would still be on the news, but of course they'll mention that it's close by to celebrity homes, it's a big fire after all and what's more in the idea that it could be arson. Not sure how they came up with that conclusion. COULD have been some unintentional out of control camp fire, possibly? But if it was done one purpose, one can only wonder if they is some connection with it being close to the big expensive celebrity homes... People are jerks after all and can have overwhelming jealousy or something. *shrugs* It's possible.


Our town is making news on this too, since we're sending our water bombers down to go help fight. 'World-famous' Mars Water Bomber. They usually go down to the states etc. Probably no mention of that on other news^^ Probably just for us, since we're contributing and coming from a small town that doesn't do much^^

[mechana2015]

Our town is making news on this too, since we're sending our water bombers down to go help fight. 'World-famous' Mars Water Bomber. They usually go down to the states etc. Probably no mention of that on other news^^ Probably just for us, since we're contributing and coming from a small town that doesn't do much^^

That bomber is amazing and I'm so glad they sent it. It's being sent to the Running Springs fire primarily (according to news reports) and has a great chance to turn this fire, which is burning houses in very rugged terrain, around, and could even save the town from being wiped off the map. It should be interesting to see something with a 747 sized wingspan doing water drops, and working in concert with the DC-10 bombers.

[K. Ayato]

I saw the shots of it on the news last night. It looks impressive, all right. I'm so glad they sent it out to help.

[mitsuki lover]

The fact is the drought in the Southeast is barely getting any coverage and it is even more devestating because of the way it has affected several States.
We did have a really bad firestorm up here around the same time as the one down in the San Francisco area back in the '90s but it hardly got noticed.
So,yes I do feel that the coverage is often biased in favor of places like California because of the population and there being more famous people.The only thing would be if Sun Valley,Idaho were to have a blizzard because a lot of famous people have winter homes there.

[Cognitive Gear]

The fact is the drought in the Southeast is barely getting any coverage and it is even more devestating because of the way it has affected several States.
We did have a really bad firestorm up here around the same time as the one down in the San Francisco area back in the '90s but it hardly got noticed.
So,yes I do feel that the coverage is often biased in favor of places like California because of the population and there being more famous people.The only thing would be if Sun Valley,Idaho were to have a blizzard because a lot of famous people have winter homes there.

Actually, your logic here is flawed. First of all, the south-east isn't the only region to be going through a drought. It is in the worst drought condition, but it is not alone. California is also going through a drought, and by that logic there should be more media coverage of the California drought than the South-East one. There is not.

Secondly, the drought still hasn't caused any major catastrophes. People are still able to live in their homes and have running water, so the story itself isn't going to get much coverage.

Thirdly, there is a very fundamental difference between the two types of problems: Fire moves quickly, so a lot of things happen over a short amount of time, demanding more air time. Droughts happen over a course of years, and things don't change very often nor do they change very quickly. No one needs to hear "The South-East is still experiencing a drought!" everyday for the next few months. One story about it every week will suffice, updating us on the living status of those who are effected. However, people do need to hear "The fire has changed directions and is now headed to local community X." At one point the fire was doing something new almost every hour. The very natures of the tragedies determine the required media coverage, not the status of it's residents.

You remind me very much of one of my co-workers. He said, "There's a fire in Malibu? Heh. Rich people deserve it." Two days later he got evacuated, and the fire wasn't so amusing anymore.

[Nate]

The fact is the drought in the Southeast is barely getting any coverage and it is even more devestating because of the way it has affected several States.

So how many houses have burned down in the southeast's drought? Zero? Wow, real newsworthy compared to a fire which has claimed almost half a million acres of property.

You're still a dolt.

[Radical Dreamer]

The fact is the drought in the Southeast is barely getting any coverage and it is even more devestating because of the way it has affected several States.

Drought in the Southeast? Well, my state has yet to go into a state of emergency. As a matter of fact, I haven't even seen a fire down here. Oh, and it rained today. Yeah, the southeast definitely deserves more coverage. Eyeroll.

Seriously ML, I can't even believe you'd say something like this while all of these people are being tragically ripped from the things they find familiar. A drought like the one in the Southeast is NOT more devastating than a drought that displaces hundreds of thousands of people from their homes, and kills others. Really, you just shouldn't say things like that. :/

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Not to mention that Tsunami's in other countries got massive coverage as well. (Like the one a few years ago). Because we totally know that there are tons of celebrities living in Pacific Island countries.

Nobody cares about people being a little low on water. People care about lives being taken and houses being ripped to shreds.

[Debitt]

Now that's just rude, ML -- look, it's perfectly justifiable to be upset about bad things that are happening in one part of the country. There's nothing wrong with that. But to go and try to downplay another tragedy that's taking place in someone else's backyard, just because you're bitter about it? That's just horrible and insensitive. I have friends and family who might be in danger because of those fires, and so do many other members of CAA, so don't just assume that a bunch of rich people on a movie screen are all that everyone cares about. You want to make sure that the people who are stuck in a drought are okay? Pray for them. Pray for everyone who's in a tight spot right now. Don't come in here and make others upset.

[Shao Feng-Li]

California catches fire all the time... So this one must really be nasty. I hope the people be okay :\

[Popsicle]

[color="DeepSkyBlue"]Yeah the fires down here in Cali are pretty serious right now. This is the largest evacuation in state history. It would be nice to have the people who have been evacuated and have lost their possesions to be in your prayers. Luckily most of the fires are almost under control and the winds are dying down. The damage is still pretty high though. I know a lot of people that have been displaced by the fire and it is really sad to see them lose their items and where they've grown up. I have chose to donate items to the red cross for the people left without a home. That is really the only way I can help right now, besides praying of course, but yeah. Also, a whole bunch of smoke has just entered the air where I live and it totally blocks out the sun. It's crazy!!!

P.S. and yes I do realize that there are other problems in the country too and anyone who is worried about those should pray about them... [/color]

[Maledicte]

Right, Mitsuki-Lover, and the only reason Hurricane Katrina was on the news was because of all the celebrities living in New Orleans.



Also, I have family living very near San Diego, where the largest fires are. How many famous people do you know live in San Diego? Of course celebrities will get mentioned, but that doesn't offset the fact that for every one celebrity there's 10,000 normal people who used to live in apartment buildings. We're not ALL celebrities here, you know. We all need prayers.

Please, think.

[Roy Mustang]

The fact is the drought in the Southeast is barely getting any coverage and it is even more devestating because of the way it has affected several States.

Okay, yes! some of the southeast states are in a drought and Georgia has been reported that we have only 90 days of water left. But we can buy water from other states.

The fires in Ca are more worst then the drought. People have lost their lives and its going to cost Millions of dollars.

This fire will have a hit on all of us. The drought is only going to hurt people the area of the drought.

Too much has been lost in the fires and there are alot of people from CAA that are from Ca.

We need to pray for the people in Ca and try to give what we can to help. So, I don't think anyone should be question if the fires in Ca is newsworthy, because they are and all of us are going feel some hurt in all of this.

[color="Red"][font="Book Antiqua"]Col. Roy Mustang
[/font]
[/color]

[K. Ayato]

How does that foot taste NOW, mitsuki?

[Nightshade X]

Everything I've wanted to say has been said... repeatedly. Still... what you said, mitsuki, was in rather poor taste. Tragedy is tragedy, no matter how much coverage it gets.

[Esoteric]

California catches fire all the time... So this one must really be nasty. I hope the people be okay :\

Indeed. The Witch fire has become the fourth largest fire in California history...over 1000 houses destroyed by it alone. A total of seven confirmed deaths from the fires in SD county so far.
For anyone interested in brief overview of the various fires, there's a list here:

http://fire.ca.gov/