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California Fires

California Fires

I was looking at Larry King Live and they are saying that these fires were caused by an arsonist or maybe more than one. The police are saying that arsonists like to look at their destructive work and brag about it. They are right now looking for leads of people who are 'showing off' this as their handy work.

Some people have lost their whole home and been evacuated to high schools. What is more sad is those same high schools have themselves been evacuated because the fires reached there.

We Discussed about what happened in Greece, what about this one, anything that could have been done differently? Schwarzenegger said that the water drop planes were not used earlier because the wins were so strong that it would not be safe to fly.

Fires California

Actually, we have learned from the previous fire that swept through California a few years back. As a result, there has only be 2 losses of life. The warning systems for area affected and instruction (demands) on the populus to get out of dangerous areas this time has saved more lives from being lost. This improvement has been noted quite a lot by people that have experienced both fires. Evacuations are not a "if you feel like leaving" kind of thing. They really are getting people out and in a timely fashion.

With wind gusts up to 100 mph, it definitely would be a bad idea to send planes up for water drops. With that kind of pay load in the plane, if a gust threw a plane around, it would be quite easy for it to crash. Jet fuel makes a nice fire and now you have even more to fight not to mention it would be nearly impossible to target your water drop with winds sustained at 40-60mph..so I agree with the Governator on this one.

This truly was a perfect situation. The Santa Ana winds are quite something for those who have never experienced them. Just think of hot desert air moving with hurricane speeds and then in this case...add fire.

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Sadly, they did not even have to die either. The husband and wife chose to stay even with the approaching fires no matter how much neighbors and the police begged them to evacuate.

I was wondering if building your home a certain amount of feet from trees or the next house would do good? Of course it is not practical but it should work, right?

Fires California

Actually, since the last big fire in California, homes have gotten even closer to wildlife with homes butted up against forrested areas, as this is something that has become quite popular. Unfortunately, the closer you are the higher chance that you will be affected by a fire. The other thing is that many of those that put their homes in those areas are not using good materials for fire resistance as they want their home to look like it comes out of the woods itself. You can see picture after picture from this fire of where a home is burned to the ground only to have the one next to it left standing and relatively unharmed, as a result of the building materials.

Fires California

Most people live on the false ideal that it can never happen to them until it does. What a hard way to learn though. Besides the aide that Bush authorized from federal funds do insurance companies generally compensate victims of these kinds of disasters?

Additionally, would it be considered that your house burnt by natural causes or arson, even if the arsonist did not start the fire right by your home?

California Fires

I'm going to upload some pictures I took here in town over the past three days. We don't have anything on fire too close to us, but the smoke from the northern part of San Diego is starting to overwhelm us. It's hard to breathe, and we are being admonished to stay indoors, not engage in heavy physical work or intense exercise.

One of the causes of the spread of these fires is the overgrowth of brush due to the flooding back in 2004/2005, remember? Then we had a very dry winter and an unusually hot summer this year, the brush all dries out, perfect fuel for a fire. Then add the hot, dry, Santa Ana winds. Homes become threatened when there isn't enough cleared space between the brush and the home.

It sounds like everything has been handled appropriately from the very beginning. No one could have foreseen the wind situation - except maybe an arsonist, which is what happened with the fires last year: he started the fire in an area where he knew the wind would drive it to make it bigger and more intense. Whether that's the case here or not, I don't know.

The winds we had were *insane*! Worst Santa Ana's I've ever experienced, and I've lived here most of my life. On Sunday night, we were driving home from a church meeting, and the dirt and debris were sheeting across the highway, pelting the car and causing poor visibility. On a road with normal 55 mph speed limit, there was a line of cars several miles long just creeping along at 25 - 30 mph. Monday morning, sand dunes - and I mean real sand dunes! - had blown up so high in some areas that stores, schools, restaurants, and roads were closed. Power lines were down, trees blown over, and literally pulled up by the roots, lay across roads, etc.

The San Diego Wild Animal Park was evacuating animals:

https://www.insideedition.com/ourstories/

Rather off topic, but... This information about helping out is getting forwarded around the SoCal area: QUOTE Upwards of 15 different wildfires were or have been burning throughout Southern California since Sunday, most notably in and around San Diego, Malibu, and Castaic.  As much as a half a million people are being evacuated or displaced by these terrible disasters, and many homes and other structures are being lost.  Here are some ways in which to help our neighbors surrounding us: How to Help Charitable groups responding to the Southern California wildfires are seeking donations to assist residents affected by the fires. American Red Cross: Cash donations can be made through www.redcross.org or through a local Red Cross chapter. Volunteers also are needed. Information on shelter locations can be found on Red Cross websites for Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange and San Diego counties and the Inland Empire. Donations of clothing can be made at Goodwill locations. Information: (800) REDCROSS or (800) 257-7575 for Spanish speakers. Salvation Army: Cash contributions can be made through its website www.salvationarmy-socal.org or by calling (800) SALARMY. Governor's Office of Emergency Services: Businesses wishing to donate large quantities of goods for distribution to fire victims can call (800) 750-2858 between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. Pacific time. Individuals wanting to donate items or volunteer to help with local disaster response efforts should contact the Red Cross or go to the governor's CaliforniaVolunteers website at www.californiavolunteers.org. United Health Group: Southern Californians coping with the emotional consequences of the fires can call a counseling hotline at (866) 342- 6892. The free service provided by the insurance company will be available around the clock for as long as needed. The Los Angeles Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: Cash donations are needed to support efforts to provide emergency shelter for animals displaced by the fires. Contributions can be made through www.spcala.com or by calling (888) SPCALA1. Food supplies also are needed. New Leash on Life: The animal rescue group needs help caring for evacuated pets at its Newhall facility. The group can be contacted at (661) 255-0097. Animal Evacuations: 818-991-0071 Arrowhead Schools 909-499-9900 Buckweed, Canyon Fire: 323-881-2411 Coronado Hills Fire: 619-590-3160 Grass Valley Fire: 909-383-5688 Harris, Rice, McCoy Fire: 619-590-3160 Irvine: 714-628-7085 Lake Forest 714-628-7085 Malibu: 310-456-2489 Orange County 800-540-8282 Ranch Fire: 626-574-5208 Riverside: 909-955-4700 Roca Fire: 951-940-6985 Santa Clarita Evacuations: 661-295-6366 Santiago Fire: 714-573-6200 Sedgewick Fire: 805-681-5546 Witch Fire: 619-590-3160 US Forest Line: 626-574-5208 (oh, and a final note: please DO NOT go driving out to see/take pictures of the fires; this is very dangerous, many roads and freeways are closed, and this also prevents emergency crews and firefighters from doing their jobs!)

California Fires

JB:
Alot of how well you are compensated by your insurance company depends on who you are insured with... There are a lot of "sketchy" insurance companies that give discount rates for insurance, but the truth is the discount comes as a result of not being reliable when needed. A huge problem is that the houses are usually undervalued by the insurance company for the claim (if they pay) and the kicker is that because there will be a TON of rebuilding going on...the cost for materials goes WAY up. Therefore, your house cost even more to rebuild than the normal building cost that you didnt fully recover anyway. On top of that, most insurance companies will argue with people about what was in the house and how much it cost. In general, you are not going to recover the cost of your house and what was in it. THe best you can hope for is to get close to the price of your house (hopefully it was appraised recently) and part of the value on what was in your house (because most likely you didnt keep reciepts).

It wont make a difference if it was arson or not unless you were the person that set the fire.

Rather off topic, but... Farseer: Do any of the cars still have paint on them? The Santa Ana's are something for those that have never experienced them.

Edited: Vincenzo on 26th Oct, 2007 - 7:39am

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California fires evacuees go home

Thousands of evacuees return to their California homes, some of which are wrecked, as wildfires subside.
Ref. https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/a...cas/7063214.stm