California's Burning

These wildfires in CA are crazy. Having grown up there I am fully aware that wildfires are, like earthquakes, drought, and mudslide, a regular thing, but the current fire is actually within striking distance of where my mom lives. The evacuated the area directly adjacent to her and it was only a matter of time before they moved out her neighborhood, it was that bad. The entire 405 freeway was shut down, and if you know anything about commuting in LA, you know that shutting down the 405 is like cutting off a major artery, slowly choking the city to death. I can't even imagine what traffic was like on the side streets. What's crazy about the videos you see online is that the entire hill is an inferno, it looks like a scene out of hell, and yet all the commuters are driving along as if it was business as usual. In a way, that is exactly the case. Why let a little brush fire prevent you from getting to work?

I spoke with my mom last night and she said things were calm where she was, though my brother and I thought she should have gotten out before the actual call to evacuate came down, but she wasn't having it. She had many options but opted to stay, and fortunately nothing bad happened. I spoke with a couple of her neighbors who actually live closer to the fire zone and they seemed to have come out of it unscathed, as well. We'll keep our fingers crossed.

In the meantime, everyone is keeping their eyes on the wind. If it kicks up and starts blowing in the wrong direction, it could spell trouble. Despite the calmer conditions, nobody is out of the woods, yet. I read that conditions in California were ripe for this disaster because they got so much precipitation this past winter that all the plants thrived and grew like crazy. Add to that a dry spring and summer, then throw in the Santa Ana winds, and disaster ensues. It's pretty scary.

What they really need is a massive rain storm, but as anyone knows, it never rains in California... it pours. Keeping my fingers crossed for the Golden State.

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Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to bugcer for the pic.