Fire just north of Anne

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Mon Nov 26, 2018 12:40 pm

Wrapping up the thread. . . Probably I will post on this thread again, from time to time, as new information comes to light. The Paradise fire crisis is over.

The housing crisis, and the displaced population crisis, is just now beginning.

As stated earlier, with the coming of the annual rainy season here, the Camp Fire has effectively been extinguished and the 2018 fire season is effectively over. Wildfire - even a fire so terrible as was the Camp Fire - cannot withstand 4 - 5 inches of steady rain.

Clean-up efforts in the area will continue, and be ongoing for the foreseeable future. It is unknown at this point how many evacuees will choose to return to Paradise - or even when those that wish to do so will be allowed to return. As of yesterday, no civilians were yet being allowed to return to the fire area, and (I have heard reported) will not be allowed to return until toxic substances have been cleaned up. Even three foot deep ash where a home once stood is considered toxic, because of the plastics, asphalt roofing - what have you - that burned.

Those that may wish to rebuild have not yet been allowed in to see what is left of their homes, nearly four weeks after the fire broke out. That probably means that the insurance adjusters have not been to these homes, either.

Those whose homes have been saved are in only a little better situation than those who lost their homes. No one has yet been allowed to return to the area - saved homes have been without electricity since the fire began. This means that the contents of refrigerators and freezers have rotted, and liquid from the decomposition seeped out onto the floor. These few homes are surrounded by miles of black and extremely odorous devastation (the smell of a burnt building or a burnt residence permeates everything for an extended area, all around). Most businesses in the area have been destroyed, including things like grocery stores, gas stations, hardware stores, etc.

In addition to the nearly 14,000 homes destroyed in the fire, much of the infrastructure of Paradise has also been destroyed. Where a fire is hot enough to burn a home - and hot enough to melt the aluminum wheels of a car trapped and consumed by a fire - it is certainly hot enough to burn power poles - and to damage so much as to make unuseable - power lines. Including electric and telephone.

Septic systems (many homes here are on wells and septic systems) may have been damaged. Newer septic tanks here are made of plastic. Well pumps and well casings (well casings here is usually plastic) may have been damaged as well.

Many trees in the area were flash-burned to ash where they stood, and are now beginning to fall, making for yet another unsafe condition that must be dealt with before people are allowed to return.

And, of course, the search for the missing still continues.

Snippets:

(this is information that I obtained by speaking directly to those affected. I have not verified the accuracy to this information, but I have little reason to doubt it):

Attending the "get-together" yesterday, mentioned in my last post, many people there who had either been forced out of their homes, or had their homes burn, expressed frustration and a bit of anger at FEMA. All stated that the process to apply for assistance was overwhelming, only to find at the end of the interviews and voluminous paperwork that little or no assistance was actually offered.

For those renters whose homes and contents had been burned - $1,100 for first, last, and security to find a new rental - in an area where just the first month's rent, on average, is well above that - in the unlikely event that a new rental could be found in the housing shortage here.

For those who still had homes, and were insured, but were out of their homes for nearly four weeks living in their cars, at shelters or with friends - nothing: no food assistance, no temporary housing assistance, no clean-up assistance, nothing.

For those whose homes and contents burned, but had insurance (again, people out of their homes for nearly a month, still unable to return, with any potential insurance payouts likely still some few weeks in the future) they were offered "low-interest loans". Nothing more than than - no temporary assistance for housing, food, clean-up - nothing. Generally the homeowner declined the loan - because, as was stated, one's budget has not changed - in many cases not possible to add a new loan payment on top of everything else.

In listening to these stories, I heard no mention of FEMA trailers being offered. FEMA trailers would have seemed logical, once the infrastructure was restored - the burned homes were on lots with power, water and telephone - most of them. When I returned home I did a search to find out where FEMA trailers might be in the mix.

This is what I found:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/in-fire-ravaged-california-where-are-the-fema-trailers

Maybe the FEMA trailers are still coming. Maybe not. California is at present considered by the federal government to be a wealthy state, well able to take care of it's citizens on it's own. FEMA trailers are Federal government, not state government.

Paradise is not, and was not, a wealthy area. It seems, at least for the moment, that people here have no where to go, and no government agency to turn to.

Very sad. Hopefully, that will change.

Please read below for selected links and updates.

Anne

Camp Fire Update, November 26, 2018

Butte County officials offering help get pets adopted, if owner can no longer care for them
https://www.actionnewsnow.com/content/news/Animals-in-Camp-Fire-Shelters-Need-to-Be-Fostered-Soon-or-Will-Be-Offered-for-Adoption-501209111.html

Firefighters reflect on Northern California's deadly Camp Fire after blaze fully contained
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/california-wildfires-camp-fire-butte-county-fully-contained-firefighters-reflect-on-experience-today-2018-11-25/

Crews prepare for next round of rain in Camp Fire burn area
https://www.kcra.com/article/crews-prepare-for-next-round-of-rain-in-camp-fire-burn-area/25300032

More bodies found as Camp Fire crews close in on full containment
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california-wildfires/article/Firefighters-close-in-on-full-containment-of-13418233.php

Task Force 3 From Peninsula Returns To Bay Area After Camp Fire
https://www.sfgate.com/news/bayarea/article/Task-Force-3-From-Peninsula-Returns-To-Bay-Area-13420305.php

From CalFire

No updated CalFire information from yesterday
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby bluepinecones » Mon Nov 26, 2018 6:37 pm

Thanks for the updates
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Irmi » Mon Nov 26, 2018 7:08 pm

Anne, I've never thanked you for your updates. Since you live so close by, you are almost living the experience, more so than the newscasters. We went to FEMA after our house was flooded the first time and it breaks my heart that these people are having such a difficult time getting help. We were able to get a loan at 3%, when we bought our house with a 14% interest rate on our mortgage, so that was a steal. Hopefully you're able to get out to walk with healthier air.
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Tue Nov 27, 2018 12:07 pm

A bit of news this morning regarding the Camp Fire, info and links below.

bluepinecones wrote:Thanks for the updates


You are very welcome. I have felt a kind of responsibility to post information that might not be available to everyone, in the hopes that conditions and climate in California might be better understood.

Irmi wrote:Anne, I've never thanked you for your updates. Since you live so close by, you are almost living the experience, more so than the newscasters. We went to FEMA after our house was flooded the first time and it breaks my heart that these people are having such a difficult time getting help. We were able to get a loan at 3%, when we bought our house with a 14% interest rate on our mortgage, so that was a steal. Hopefully you're able to get out to walk with healthier air.


Thank you, Irmi. Your comments are very much appreciated.

I am/was about 30 miles from the fires; this might sound like a great distance, but it really is not. When I went to the club "get-together" I mentioned earlier, my regular route was through the town of Gridley (where the Butte County Fairgrounds is located).

There were still a great many tents and RV's packing the fairgrounds - I assume these were all evacuees (still there, over three weeks post fire start). I did not stop, and had not made a special effort to drive by - this is just my regular route to where my rock club holds their weekly lapidary classes.

Once through Oroville, one begins to see the blackened verges of the fire that came close to Oroville. Driving further up Hwy-70, I could see that fire stopped less than a mile west of 70 (in some places I could see where it had crossed over). Again, I had not made any kind of "special trip" to see the fire damage, this is just the regular route I drive to attend classes.

Looking west, the hills were totally blackened as far as I could see, both to the west and to the north of where I was driving. Black as in black; black as charcoal.

Glad to know that you were helped by FEMA. I still have hope that FEMA will come through for the Camp Fire victims, but as time goes on this begins to seem less likely. But I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Butte County, where the Camp Fire occurred, is one of the poorest counties in the state. Many people in the area of the Paradise fire have lost not only their homes, but their jobs as well (many businesses also burned in Paradise). People here, without a lot of income in the first place, often are not able to stretch their budget in order to make any kind of loan payments, even loans as low as 3% interest.

"Housing crisis in Butte County grows as 45,000 remain evacuated due to Camp Fire [couple burned out of their home, no money, no place to live - "We went to FEMA twice and asked them to help us and they denied us both times," said Monique, "because we had insurance. We didn't want money from them. We just want a temporary place to live because we have no place to go."]
https://abc7news.com/housing-crisis-in- ... e/4768752/

I don't know why fire victims in California should be treated any differently than hurricane victims. Perhaps, due to the scope of this disaster, FEMA is being slow to respond, and some kind of help is still on the way. One can but hope.

Another problem discussed by fire victims at the get-together I attended is the fact that many media outlets (radio, television) have created ways for people to donate money to the fire victims. These same media outlets are stating that they have "collected millions" for support of the Camp Fire victims. The people I spoke to have not seen a penny of this money, and are asking where all of this money is going to.

Millions pour in for Camp Fire relief. [Here is one link - there are many others:]
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/11/26/millions-pour-in-for-camp-fire-relief/

The air quality here now is fine, back to normal. Thanks for asking. Back to my evening walks with Big Joe.
The rain washes all of the smoke and particulate matter out of the air. We have had about 4 or 5 inches of rain over the last several days. Our skies are again blue - that is, when not covered by rain clouds.

I think I shall put together a post explaining a bit more about the benefits and threats of our chaparral-covered hillsides. I have not seen anything giving a good explanation in the media (or else I would have posted a link to it). It might help those of you on here that might be interested, to better understand why the situation regarding fire prevention here is so very complex.

Will try to write this up over the next day or so. If anyone is interested, please watch for it.

Among so much else, the first installment of California property taxes are due on December 10.

Please read on for selected Camp Fire links, below. 88 now confirmed dead, 203 still listed as missing.

Thank you.

Anne

'This Fire Was Outrunning Us': Surviving the Camp Fire Took Bravery, Stamina and Luck
http://www.govtech.com/em/disaster/This-Fire-Was-Outrunning-us-Surviving-the-Camp-Fire-Took-Bravery-Stamina-and-Luck.html

Losing Paradise: A visual essay of the Camp Fire
http://extras.mercurynews.com/paradise/

88 Dead, 203 Still Unaccounted For After Camp Fire Contained
https://www.npr.org/2018/11/27/671074763/88-dead-203-still-unaccounted-for-after-camp-fire-contained

Many people are still not home post Camp Fire
https://krcrtv.com/news/camp-fire/many-people-are-still-not-home-post-camp-fire

Property tax adjustments in the works for Camp Fire victims
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/11/26/property-tax-adjustments-in-the-works-for-camp-fire-victims/

Butte District Attorney cautions against potential Camp Fire scams
https://krcrtv.com/news/camp-fire/butte-district-attorney-cautions-against-potential-camp-fire-scams
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby BarbaraRose » Wed Nov 28, 2018 2:18 am

I also want to throw my "thank you" into this post! Ann, your posts have been very informative and I appreciate all the links you shared. It has been very emotional for me to read about all of the death and devastation but having good information helps a lot. I wish I was able to help in some way. I have made a couple of small donations. I hope Fema comes thru soon and the rest of the donations get to the people who so desperately need them.
Barbie, Romeow, and Sophie, missing Lola! (and lots of ferrets running around in my heart!)

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby SoCalGalcas » Wed Nov 28, 2018 11:10 am

Annie, I too have been very interested in your posts. Thanks for putting so much detail into them!

Our Grocery Outlet across the street from us has a container for cash donations to the people that worked at the store in Paradise. Every time I go in I throw all my change into their container. I like to make donations directly to whom I want to help...haven’t donated to United Fund since the big “Concord” scandle.

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby OregonLuvr » Wed Nov 28, 2018 12:13 pm

I too am very careful whom I donate to. I like to donate to the local people, but NOT to the big ones. Carr fire in Redding the Shasta something foundation got millions but it didnt give it to the people it put it in a fund for restoration and future disaster help....puhleese. For the Camp Fire I donated to the animal rescue group and Cowboy 911. Unfortunately they are now kicked out of the recovery phase and it is taken over by Animal control who is already understaffed and underequipped. Well we all know how that will go but at least my funds will help Cowboy 911 as they are still transporting and collecting supplies to give to the people with animal needs and also to the rescues and vet clinics donating their care. I hate Bureaucracy , they are all about "rules and regulations", give me a break, these people need help and they need it NOW.
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Colliemom » Wed Nov 28, 2018 6:35 pm

I donate to our local Salvation Army as they do a lot to help those in need in this county. Their Red Kettle campaign at Christmas usually sets record for donations each year as people know it’s going too stay here and be used for the people. The store here is always busy too.
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Fri Nov 30, 2018 3:52 am

November 30, 2018

A few bits of news regarding the Camp Fire:

Camp Fire: Recovery efforts end, flooding prompts evacuations
[At its height, more than 500 people were scouring the ruins of thousands of buildings. Remains of 88 people were recovered, officials said.
Although active searches for remains have halted, Honea has said that it’s possible crews may have missed remains that would have been difficult to detect.
Residents returning to their properties as evacuation orders begin to lift — as early as next week — may discover bones or bone fragments, he said.
]
https://www.sfgate.com/california-wildfires/article/Camp-Fire-Flooding-forces-evacuations-near-Butte-13432527.php

Paradise was in flames around him. This officer turned on his body-worn camera
https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/29/us/camp-fire-body-cam-footage/index.html

Northern California, reeling from Camp Fire devastation, evacuates from flash floods
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/11/29/camp-fire-burn-areas-deal-flood-warnings/2156581002/

Torrential downpour destroys tents housing homeless Camp Fire evacuees
https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/11/29/torrential-downpour-destroys-tents-housing-homeless-camp-fire-evacuees/23604963/

FEMA trailers have a bad name. But the Camp Fire could bring 2,000 to Paradise
https://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/fires/article222307570.html

Fire, then floods: Evacuations and road closures
https://www.orovillemr.com/2018/11/29/flash-flood-warning-issued-in-camp-fire-burn-area-butte-county/

Brothers' trailer ransacked after the pair helped Camp Fire victims.With their trailer, Nathan and William Punt delivered care packages to victims
https://www.kget.com/news/local-news/brothers-trailer-ransacked-after-the-pair-helped-camp-fire-victims/1628419284

Still working on my manzanita post.

Thanks.

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Mon Dec 03, 2018 12:49 am

The television news program "60 Minutes" had a quite interesting segment tonight (December 2) on the Camp Fire "Paradise Lost - Inside California's Camp fire":

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/paradise-lost-inside-california-camp-fire-60-minutes/

and another segment "From the Archives: The Age of Megafires". This segment was particularly interesting, because it talked about the coming of the Megafire - and it was originally broadcast in 2008, ten years ago!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/from-the-archives-the-age-of-megafires-60-minutes

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Mon Dec 03, 2018 10:49 pm

Came across this Camp Fire "flyover" video. I am familiar with the area, and even I found this footage jaw-dropping and informative. For the first time, in watching this video, I actually (and finally) began to understand the scope - and immense size - of this disaster.

Juan Brown (the man who posted this video on YouTube) is a commercial airline pilot that has a GoPro camera and a small plane (he flies big cargo jets overseas and back for a living). During the Oroville dam disaster, the footage and information he posted on YouTube was invaluable - far more than could be found anywhere on the commercial television networks. He often did fly-overs of Oroville dam, making comments, as the disaster unfolded.

I don't necessarily agree with all of his opinions, and his politics are not mine - but his Camp Fire flyover footage really gives a better idea of the sheer devastation caused by this fire. I'm a bit familiar with small single-engine airplanes of the type he is flying in this video - I worked at a flight school when I was a young woman. So I'm guessing that his Luscombe (the make of his aircraft) is motoring along at around one-hundred or maybe one-hundred-fifty mph. It still takes him nearly a half hour to fly the perimeter around the burn area.

I think he is loosely affiliated with a newspaper in Grass Valley, Ca. But he seems to pretty much do this stuff on his own, as a kind of hobby. He is to be commended for this, and for his Oroville dam videos.

Well worth watching, if you have a reliable internet connection:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LxWKaiZ5o4

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Wed Dec 05, 2018 11:47 am

‘After Paradise’—Those still missing in the Camp Fire; plus, PG&E’s role [This is a daily radio broadcast from North State Public Radio on the Camp Fire - Anne]
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/12/04/after-paradise-those-still-missing-in-the-camp-fire-plus-pges-role/

Camp Fire Forces Insurance Company Out of Business
http://fortune.com/2018/12/04/merced-camp-fire-insurance-company/

Hundreds of Pets Rescued from Camp Fire Still in Shelters
https://fox40.com/2018/12/04/hundreds-of-pets-rescued-from-camp-fire-still-in-shelters/

Camp Fire Survivor Reunites With Dog That Saved Him
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/national-international/Camp-Fire-Survivor-Reunites-With-Dog-That-Saved-Him-501933271.html

Firefighters talk about forming a circle of engines to shelter people from the Camp Fire
https://krcrtv.com/news/camp-fire/firefighters-talk-about-forming-a-circle-of-engines-to-shelter-people-from-the-camp-fire

Camp Fire: The last 11 people unaccounted for
https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/12/05/camp-fire-the-last-11-people-unaccounted-for/

FEMA trailers arrive to help Camp Fire survivors
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfires/fema-trailers-arrive-to-help-camp-fire-survivors/103-620245677

FEMA trailers will accommodate Camp Fire survivors with animals
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfires/fema-trailers-will-accommodate-camp-fire-survivors-with-animals/103-619227010

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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby BarbaraRose » Wed Dec 05, 2018 1:58 pm

Thanks for keeping us updated. Glad to see the list of missing is down to only 11 now. Disappointed in FEMA only offering 5 trailers so far, tho.
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Colliemom » Thu Dec 06, 2018 8:25 am

Thanks so much for posting all of this information. As you stated, the video of the flyover was indeed shocking. It really brought out the scope of this disaster. You can clearly see why people weren’t able to escape and where the fire played hit and miss. Terrible tragedy and from what I have read, this is the beginning of “megafires” that will become a way of life in CA as climate chage evolves more.
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Re: Fire just north of Anne

Postby Cudedog » Sun Dec 09, 2018 1:03 pm

Colliemom wrote:Thanks so much for posting all of this information. As you stated, the video of the flyover was indeed shocking. It really brought out the scope of this disaster. You can clearly see why people weren’t able to escape and where the fire played hit and miss. Terrible tragedy and from what I have read, this is the beginning of “megafires” that will become a way of life in CA as climate chage evolves more.


I go into a little bit of the reasons for Megafires, below. Yes, the video was most definitely shocking. Sadly, "megafires" are not coming. I think they are already here.

Thanks for your post, Sue. I have lived in California since I was three years old, and I can remember fires happening here every year since I was a small child. Fire is a way of life in California. There are lots of people - most of which who don't live in California - who are of the opinion that fire shouldn't happen.

While I might agree that fire could be mitigated with judicious forest management, this is not so simple as it might sound. Much of the national (federally controlled) and state controlled forests here are not actually what one might have in mind as "forest", that is, tall conifer trees. Much of it is chaparral, which easily burns. If one looks carefully at the video (and understand what one is looking at) it can easily be seen that much of the vegetation in the burned areas of the Camp Fire, particularly on the sides of the steep canyons, is not composed of tall trees, but rather brush (chaparral).

Here is a photo of a California mountainscape covered by chaparral, just about as far as the eye can see. This is photo is pretty typical of California:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_chaparral_and_woodlands#/media/File:Los_Padres_S.jpg

There is no economic advantage for logging companies to come in to thin brushy chaparral areas. Logging companies are only in the business to harvest trees (think lumber). The brush - composed in this area of mostly manzanita and scrub oak - has no economic value as lumber. The only value that it might have is as firewood - but the expense of clearing brush is considerably more, dollar-wise, than any resulting firewood could possibly be sold for.

Yes, there is a lot of brush in the understory of conifer forests here - but even when logging companies go in to "selectively" cut trees for "thinning" - they do nothing to remove the brush (chaparral) that is already there. Additionally, any slash (slash is the term for what remains when trees are felled - all limbs, branches, etc., - also small trees or tree species not used for lumber - are removed before the felled tree is loaded on a truck bound for the sawmill). This slash is generally just left where it lies. Think of a tree maybe 150 foot tall, with all of it's branches removed - we might be talking a ton or more of slash left behind, lying in the forest. Per tree.

Photo of logging slash:
https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-logging-slash-in-clear-cut-with-forested-mountains-3698149.html

Again, it costs Big Bucks for the logging companies that harvest the trees to remove the slash. So they don't.

Much of the chaparral (that was underneath, and surrounded these trees) in the understory is also damaged, or killed by the falling of these trees.

So, put this all together - tons and tons of slash and dead chaparral left drying in California's 100 degree plus summer sun, with no rain for months, makes for a recipe for disaster.

I know all of this first-hand. Living in the lower foothills of the Sierra for nearly thirty years, and maybe taking a long walk in the woods (or maybe going on a long horseback ride, which I often did in my younger years), one could see this slash everywhere. LOL - never near the road, though - just far enough off the road so that it could not be seen by passing vehicles.

Another thing that you will never read about, that I have seen first hand is this: When it does snow in the lower elevations of the foothills, it is generally a very light dusting that pretty much melts before it "sticks" to the ground and begins to pile up. Notice that I am saying "generally" here. Once every ten or fifteen years or so, a very heavy snowfall will come - we had one while I was living there that was almost four feet deep. Vegetation - the scattered Ponderosa Pines, Live Oaks (of course oak trees are "live", Live Oak is the name of a particular species), and Manzanita is not evolved for this kind of snow load, and will lose many large branches (these branches weighing maybe hundreds of pounds) because they break off due to this snow load. Additionally, many pines, oaks and tall Manzanita will just topple over, as their root systems cannot support the additional load.

This heavy snow might just fall "locally" - meaning over just a few hundred square miles.

I had a large oak tree, maybe a hundred-fifty feet tall, out behind my house fall over due to the snow load (extremely lucky it did not hit my house - it would have demolished my house). We had to hire someone to come and remove it. When this happens not on my property, but out in the surrounding forest, no one and no agency comes to do any kind of clean up. Again, this downed vegetation is left to dry in the sun, adding to the fire hazard. It will lie there for years, until the next fire comes through.

Yes, it might be a good idea to clear the understory of chaparral here to help mitigate fires. But it is not so easy. Firstly, it is extremely expensive and labor-intensive to clear chaparral, particularly in the mountains.

California is a very mountainous state. Many, if not most, people who don't live here don't realize this.

And in the unlikely event that the chaparral was cleared, there would be nothing left to prevent erosion and mud slides in the areas that had been "cleared". Mud slides contaminate waterways.

There is some thirty-million acres of forested land here in California, much of it has no roads in or out, and, in any case, the canyon slopes are far too steep for a bulldozer to navigate. It would just tumble down the slope. Likely the dozer driver would not survive. Hand crews might be an option - but at, maybe, $20/hr per person, multiplied over thirty-million acres, the math becomes totally staggering. Also, there is no budget for this kind of work - neither at the state or federal level.

And - if - once the land was cleared of this brush, what to do with it? There isn't a landfill in existence that could take this amount of brush - think (at minimum!) two tons of brush per acre. Burn it? In California, the land of major air pollution? Probably not. Around ten million Californians experienced a comparable kind of air pollution with the Camp Fire - and the Camp Fire "only" burned about one-hundred-fifty thousand acres. Certainly not thirty million.

And - once the brush is "cleared" - in a year or two (or three) it will just simply grow back (it is the natural order of things - impossible to remove falling seeds from the brush as it is removed), and the process would need to be started all over again. Even after a major wildfire, chaparral will grow back in a year or two.

About thirty years or so ago, if I remember correctly, a proposal was made by the Forest Service to spray the forest with herbicides, in order to kill the brush. Aside from the fact that this would have possibly created millions of acres of dead dry brush, those who would live underneath this spraying, and those who drank from the reservoirs where the water from the forest drains to (pretty much everyone in California "drinks" from California reservoirs) were up in arms. Why? Because drinking water would likely then become contaminated by the herbicides, draining with the water out of the forest into the reservoirs.

Add all of the above to the fact that summer temps in California are increasing (100 - 110 degrees for weeks or months during the summer), and our rainy season has shortened considerably (very little rain so far this year - at this point in December we should have had many inches of rain that has not yet come). Thus the California (and western states) drought persists. It should be no surprise to anyone that fires are a constant threat here.

Again, there are no simple answers to California's fire problems.

Anyone who tells you that they have the answers, are either fooling themselves, or they are fooling you. Probably both.

Thanks for reading. Please read below for new Camp Fire links.

Anne

David Little: From above, Camp Fire looks even worse [We flew in stunned silence. . .“I’m amazed that a fire started here and burned through the town of Paradise, then threatened Chico and Oroville in a span of, what, a few hours?” . . .Almost all of the population centers of Butte County were threatened before a single day was over.]
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/12/09/david-little-from-above-camp-fire-looks-even-worse/

Rebuilding from Camp Fire to take years because of labor shortage, insurance costs
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california-wildfires/article/Why-rebuilding-after-Camp-Fire-may-take-years-13452159.php

After the deadly Camp Fire, a dog waited for his owner’s return. They’ve finally been reunited.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2018/12/08/after-deadly-camp-fire-dog-waited-his-owners-return-theyve-finally-been-reunited/?utm_term=.452d7985b7f2

Hundreds Of Animals Affected By The Camp Fire Still Await New Homes
https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2018/12/08/hundreds-of-animals-affected-by-the-camp-fire-still-await-new-homes/

'Day-and-night difference': Fish skins help treat dog burned in Camp Fire
https://www.kcra.com/article/day-and-night-difference-fish-skins-help-treat-dog-burned-in-camp-fire/25446146

Camp Fire effect on environment, wildlife still uncertain
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/12/08/camp-fire-effect-on-environment-wildlife-still-uncertain/

Family finds beloved cat alive a month after Camp Fire destroyed home
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/family-finds-beloved-cat-alive-a-month-after-camp-fire-destroyed-home/103-622329842

FEMA housing for Camp Fire victims arrive in Corning
https://www.chicoer.com/2018/12/06/fema-housing-for-camp-fire-victims-arrive-in-corning/

Class-action lawsuit alleges deadly California wildfire was caused by Pacific Gas & Electric
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/12/05/lawsuit-utility-camp-wildfire-pacific-gas-electric-unsafe-negligent/2221260002/
Last edited by Cudedog on Sun Dec 09, 2018 5:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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