What’s happened in LA could easily happen anywhere in the West given similar conditions.
Not only do we need to start building with fire retardant materials (like Guba referenced), but we need to be more cognizant of where we build. I shudder when I see homes built on the benches/foothills surrounded by scrub oak or other vegetation. Those are disasters just waiting to happen, and events we’ll all pay for with increased premiums. I dont know why we dont insist on a fire border between Mountain vegetation and development.
The firesmart website talks about things like creating a defensible area around your home by clearing out vegetation near the home, creating larger buffers with the surrounding wild areas, etc. While it is a very nice vibe to have a home in the forest, it is a disaster waiting to happen unless some serious mitigation takes place.
My parents had a place in the Bridger-Teton forest in Wyoming. If they hadn’t done some serious mitigation they would have lose more than just a couple cracked windows. Others in their area weren’t so smart or lucky.
I remember that we talked about fires, and what they were doing to mitigate damage. I’m glad that my parents took it seriously and did a bunch of clearing around their place. Lessons can be learned 2 ways, the easy or the hard way.
The thing to look at in this article is the commentary. It is astounding for so many people to be so misinformed about the nature of large wild-land fires, and in particular, the conditions in LA. It bears repeating:
The winds were sustained, over 100 MPH in some ridges.
California has plenty of water. it is the loss of pressure that makes it impossible to access water
We cannot make “fire breaks” big enough for embers as big as flying pieces of burning coal sailing miles away.
Phenomenal amounts of smoke block observation of any new spot fires until they are also untenable.
the need to evacuate people first and try to preserve neighborhoods unscathed is the only thing /Cal Fire could have done.
The people fighting the fire (including civilians) but particularly the airborne crews are HEROES. Bravery is not the absence of fear, it is doing dangerous/deadly work under duress in the presence of fear.
Composite materials are now more available to replace wooden structures, but as we clearly see, plenty of brick and concrete structures burned flat to the ground.
An historically wet and green spring, followed by historically dry summer make a virtual carpet of tinder for even the smallest spark to initiate propagating fires.
Victim blaming for political gain is unproductive, ignorant and cruel.
What is wrong with people. Are those that criticize liberal policies donating any money or resources to virtually 100’s of thousands of fellow Americans?
Here’s an amazing article about just one of the brave and talented crew members who were at the fire in 18 minutes from the start. The fire was lost in the time it took to get to the scene. It’s January. Not late September. We almost lost Summit Park a couple years ago. That was a close one, but trucks can’t drive in the forest and ample hydrant water didn’t save the day. It’s simply amazing now aircraft were lost in this fire.
The internet makes everyone feel they are an instant “expert” on any given situation, along with an anonymous megaphone to say anything they want with no repercussions whatsoever. It’s the perfect mix for horrible people to show just how horrible they are en masse. It’s this, compounded exponentially when driven by politics.
Y’all clearly do not understand the importance of getting graduate degrees from the University of Fox, University of FB, University of Truth Social, etc.