topic Re: A question regarding Ca. fires in Community Chat

A question regarding Ca. fires

Tyak — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 18:44:20 GMT

I don't and never have lived in Ca. but I don't remember these types of devastating fires except in recent years. Did you have them 20 years ago, to this extent? If so, OK I just don't recall them but, if not, what's changed in that time?

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

Kachina624 — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 18:52:34 GMT

I'd assume the drought in the West has a lot to do with it. Everything is extremely dry and brittle, just tinder for a fire. We have the same here in New Mexico and have been getting just a small amount of what should be our average rainfall. Fortunately good snowfall in the mountains has kept forest fires down.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

bikerbabe — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 18:57:30 GMT

My understanding:
More extremes swinging between rain and drought .
Greater population densities in high fire risk areas.
Debate over how to handle thinning out dead under growth due to drought and bark beetles. (Environmental debate plus incredibly expensive.)
Also, criticism leveled at Pacific Gas & Electric for not doing more to upgrade their infrastructure in recent decades - Fires caused by sparking power lines in high wind events. The wind event right now is particularly bad.
That being said, large wildfires have always been around but, yes, they seem to be more frequent and due to the population growth, affecting more than just forests but people as well.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

ahoymate — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:03:43 GMT

Tyak, have your heard about climate change, global warming?

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

sunshine45 — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:04:30 GMT

i live in southern california part time because i own a business there and have a s/o there, but i was there during the 2003 and 2007 fires in san diego area. had never experienced anything like it before. gray skies, ash, poor air quality, roads shut down, homes lost, people and animals evacuated......

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

Alison Wonderland — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:04:41 GMT

@Tyak wrote:
I don't and never have lived in Ca. but I don't remember these types of devastating fires except in recent years. Did you have them 20 years ago, to this extent? If so, OK I just don't recall them but, if not, what's changed in that time?

The climate.

I grew up in CA and still have family there. The summers have been getting increasingly warmer where my parents are and the rain has been increasingly scarce. The house they live in has no AC and they didn't need it, but in the last 20 years, summer days have been getting hotter and longer. It used to be rare that temperatures would get over 92 and now that's more common. Days over 100 are also more common than they were when I was a kid in the east bay. Five years ago, they had to buy an AC unit to stay cool during the day.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

DiAnne — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:08:45 GMT

I grew up there and we did not have fires like this then but with all the people moving to CA over the last 20-30 years they have built large housing developments in canyons and areas that are fire prone. Add that to the drought conditions in the west and you have a recipe for disaster.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

GSPgirl — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:13:16 GMT

@ahoymate wrote:
Tyak, have your heard about climate change, global warming?

Nothing new. I grew up in San Diego, Ca when we HAD forest management. We still had fires especially around the time of Santa Ana winds, but they weren't as bad. It really upsets me when I hear it's all about global warming, which is obviously caused by us right? I went to college next door to Paradise, CA where they had a horrible fire. I suggest you watch the Nova special about this subject. We will always have cycles in the weather according to my geologist dad.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

mousiegirl — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 19:21:40 GMT

@Tyak Draught or not, that area is always dry in the summer, and has been known for fires forever, but people took the chance and bought in that area, knowing sooner or later this might happen, but doubt anyone predicted this devastation. I could actually smell the fire and see the smoke in my area last night, and we are far away from the fires, blown all the way down here by historical winds on Sunday.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

ahoymate — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 23:14:12 GMT

QGirl2, it is new for No. California. Never, have fires that destroyed entire towns nor 90+mile/hour winds. It's new for No. California.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

Nancy Drew — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 20:10:33 GMT

We have always had fires in fire season. My parents have lived Woodland Hills for over 60 years. The difference is population explosion and water shortages due to over populated area. We have always had droughts also. Less water, more people, not a good combo. My last Halloween and my last fire season here. Thank goodness. No longer enjoyable living here.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

qbetzforreal — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 20:40:26 GMT

Native Californian and an Angeleno here- brush fires, mudslides are part of the package of living here.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

Beth-QVC — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 20:48:05 GMT

challenging moderation

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

suzyQ3 — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 21:20:50 GMT

@bikerbabe wrote:
My understanding:
More extremes swinging between rain and drought .
Greater population densities in high fire risk areas.
Debate over how to handle thinning out dead under growth due to drought and bark beetles. (Environmental debate plus incredibly expensive.)
Also, criticism leveled at Pacific Gas & Electric for not doing more to upgrade their infrastructure in recent decades - Fires caused by sparking power lines in high wind events. The wind event right now is particularly bad.
That being said, large wildfires have always been around but, yes, they seem to be more frequent and due to the population growth, affecting more than just forests but people as well.

@bikerbabe, good rundown of the many contributions. I will add that your first one is a result of climate change.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

chrystaltree — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 21:29:00 GMT

@bikerbabe

Yes, that just about sums it. It's what the experts have been saying.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

ann1989 — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 23:04:04 GMT

The news said if just a speck of debris hits an electrical wire that is made airborne from the wind, it can cause the wire to spark. I just never heard of that before that this was such an easy thing to happen. Maybe it's that the sparking wires are old and easier now to spark and then land on a tree or a structure.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

squeaks — Tue, 29 Oct 2019 02:41:07 GMT

We hsven’t had rain in 154 days.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

haddon9 — Tue, 29 Oct 2019 02:47:09 GMT

@Tyak wrote:
I don't and never have lived in Ca. but I don't remember these types of devastating fires except in recent years. Did you have them 20 years ago, to this extent? If so, OK I just don't recall them but, if not, what's changed in that time?

@Tyak I was wondering about that too. However I went out to Sonoma three summers ago and I was surprised to see how brown everything was. That's when I realized there had been a continuing drought for some time.

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

september — Tue, 29 Oct 2019 03:35:33 GMT

I moved to California about 33 years ago. Right off the bat, there were some devastating fires near to me, including the Pebble Beach and Oakland Hills fires.

however, we were never faced with what is going on right now...having the power company turn off the switch due to dry, windy conditions

Re: A question regarding Ca. fires

september — Tue, 29 Oct 2019 03:38:05 GMT

@Nancy Drew wrote:
We have always had fires in fire season. My parents have lived Woodland Hills for over 60 years. The difference is population explosion and water shortages due to over populated area. We have always had droughts also. Less water, more people, not a good combo. My last Halloween and my last fire season here. Thank goodness. No longer enjoyable living here.

I expect to leave the weekend after Halloween! Just waiting to hear when the car transport will do the pick up. Mixed feelings, but an overall sense that it's the right thing to do