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[–] Sudanon ago  (edited ago)

Generally - water runs down hill, tides go up and down, climates change, and, forests in dry climates burn.

Some tree species, such as eucalypts from Australia (there are a lot of these in Cali) need fire to initiate their breeding cycle. The plants have evolved to hold onto their seeds until the passage of a wildfire - the seeds are then released onto soil that is covered with nutrient ash and cleared of sunlight robbing competitor plants.

The longer between burns in a dry climate forest, the greater the load of accumulated fuel (wood, leaves, etc), and, the bigger the resulting fire.

The more you kick the can down the road by putting out minor fires, using a lot of effort and resources - the more you set your self up for a monster wildfire in years to come.

People who build houses in the middle of flood plains will get flooded at some time - the are essentially building a house in a river bed that is temporarily dry.

People who build houses in a dry climate forest will be subject to wildfire one day - they are essentially building a house in a forest that is temporarily not on fire.

Fires frequently begin from natural causes. However, it is obvious that pyromaniacs, and, now more recently terrorists, play an enormous role in starting fires.

A forest that has not burned for decades represents tens of thousands of tons (kilotons) or more of stored energy. A pyromaniac or a terrorist can unleash all that stored energy with something as simple as a match. It is beyond negligence to willingly build houses and communities buried in the foliage of a dry climate forest. It is beyond reason to expect armies of brave volunteers to risk their lives, and the taxpayer to spend tens of millions of dollars, in an attempt to save the assets of those who are so willfully negligent.

The lethal radiation distance of a wildfire is roughly equal to the height of the flames. So a hundred yard/meter high wild fire will kill you from radiant heat alone at a distance of a hundred yards/meters. Then there is the toxic smoke to contend with...

In Australia we are slowly coming to terms with the dry climate forest environment. In winter Sydney air quality is often putrid and the air filled with smoke - as fire fighting volunteers deliberately burn the surrounding forests to reduce the forest fuel load.

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[–] ArtistiqueJewelry [S] ago 

I understand what you are saying. My family used to live up in the mountains and my parents were burned out many years ago from controlled burns that were considered necessary.

In that fire, different from these fires where I took screenshots, the trees also burned. That area in the mountains where I used to live is Still recovering.

The photos for this Ca fire, are very different. When I was in Kindergarten through 3rd grade I lived in California. When fire happened, trees burned. These trees and lines where the burning stops, no explanation for one home burning and the neighbors not. . .is not the norm.

Fire seeming to be intelligent enough to jump over bushes, avoid trees, even branches we all use for kindling, pine needles, dry brush, trash cans and mailboxes made of wood and plastic. All those photos I put in the article are an eye opener to me. We have friends on the Fire Dept. and they know this is not normal.

I am sorry for your air quality. We have poor air quality in my town, which my doctor has verified, from the chemical spraying they doing in the atmosphere that is far different from the contrails and now he son suffers from terrible asthma when he never used to as many of us do. Sad.