SoCal Fires

[JasonGotaProblem]

You can only get 10 gallons of shat in a 10 gallon hat and only so much water through pipes and a water system.  Open enough valves and  the largest main will loose pressure.

All the water in the world wouldn't help when 60-100mph winds are driving the fire 200 yds a minute.

The ocean will stop it but there are a lot of homes and businesses in the path.

If people have already decided that the political party they hate is responsible theres literally nothing to change their mind.

Cable news just needs to seed the idea.

[Gfish]

Wow, there's gonna be alota worthless finger pointing for a long time. "We need to hold assembly hearings on this disaster because the people of California want answers now!" The political positioning is probably all but over with, they're just waiting for the grandstand mike. Should be entertaining, but maybe only to someone like me. What a waste.

I think Mark's characteristically blunt statement sums it up well. When the conditions are right(as bad as they can possibly be)there's almost nothing you can do. Water's best use in a situation like that "might" be best used mostly for mop-up. I know, easy for me to say... I learned many years ago trying to stop a house trailer fire; a certain temperature(possibly density of burning material also)would vaporize any water stream, with no effect on the heat source.

[jgp12000]

"Feckless" is a new 50 cent word for me,it knows no party either.The damage is done,now people have died or lost everything regardless of who they put in those
Leadership roles.

[El Pescador]

I find these maps show the fire devastation in the LA Basin.



These are from the San Jose Mercury News, I am a long-time subscriber, and I give the Merc News all credit, the above map was from yesterday's paper,

and here is one from today.




Wayne

[jurelometer]

All the water in the world wouldn't help when 60-100mph winds are driving the fire 200 yds a minute.

That's the only truth everyone needs to know!

This  makes sense.

I read an interview with a local fire chief that was not very interested in the water pressure debate.  He said something along the lines of "you can't fight these kind of fires with hydrants".

Similarly, the other distracting claims mentioned look to be both factually  wrong and irrelevant.  There are far too many "news" sources out there willing to tell us only what we want to hear.

As others here have noted, we are up against increased housing density in fire prone areas, increasing periods of drought, and more frequent high temperatures plus stronger Santa Anas.  The stuff with no specific villains and no easy short term solutions.

Hope that you SoCal folks get a break and maybe some gentle rains, so you can get a few months off from this mess.
 
-J

[Brewcrafter]

"Gentle Rains".  For folks not familiar with the area and the dynamics of wildland fires - I am not optimistic but have hope. - john

[Jim Fujitani]

No one has yet mentioned the "drone incident".

"Super scooper" (likely deHaviland CL425EAF) planes are on loan from Canada.  They can fly above the water and quickly scoop up water to fill their 1500 gallon tanks. They were being used as the wind speeds started decreasing, and are usually used in pairs.  One of the planes collided with a private drone, causing a hole in the wing;  scratching and parking that vital and effective air craft.  It is unlikely that the damaged plane will be repaired in time to be used during this current wind/fire event, since the owner is in Canada and the repairs will have to be authorized by the owners.

Anytime wild fires are being fought with aircraft, that air space is typically restricted; no drones, and news helicopter crews are well aware of altitude flight restrictions.  One idiot didn't heed the limitations and took this tool out of the equation. 

[Keta]

The drone flyer needs to go to prison.

The pertinent conditions came together at the same time. Very low RH(relative humidity), high sustained speed Santa Anna winds with gusts up to 100mph and nice thick fine fuels from 2-relatively wet past winters.
The politics should interesting and even amusing at times. Should be plenty of it given the given the economics of the affected zip codes.

Plus a few arsonists.

As for politians most are self interest pricks. However the tax payers would "surround the castle" and crucify them if they were forced to fund a water system big enough to even slow these fires down.  You can only push so much water through a pipe and the more valves opened the less flow.

[Swami805]

The lowest of scum in this tragedy are the looters. I hope they really drop the hammer on those bottom feeders

[Keta]

Why did it become unfashionable to shoot looters on sight.

[Rocket Dog]

I find these maps show the fire devastation in the LA Basin.



These are from the San Jose Mercury News, I am a long-time subscriber, and I give the Merc News all credit, the above map was from yesterday's paper,

and here is one from today.




Wayne

Calabasas and Pacific Palisades is a classic hockey stick graph and pretty ominous of the future and likely hood of dropped policyholders.

I have to keep an eye on mine. We are about 500ft from the designated fire zone State Farm listed after our own fire 10 yrs ago.

[MarkT]

No news yet as to the cause of each of these fires?

[Keta]

I read where they caught a vagrant lighting fires but not the current big ones. I wish I knew where but it is all "LA" to me.

[Maxed Out]

I read where they caught a vagrant lighting fires but not the current big ones. I wish I knew where but it is all "LA" to me.

 People that live in that neighborhood subdued a guy on a bicycle carrying a torch. He was arrested and then later he was released due to lack of evidence. He didn't live in the area he was trolling with torch in hand, and news also said he was a homeless person

[Keta]

There is a time and place for vigilance committees and rope.