With all of the insanity in the world, I didn’t even know wildfires were back in CA. Glad to see Apple donating to worthy causes.
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Apple Donating to Wildfire Relief Efforts in California
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The wildfires are especially bad this year because amidst a heat wave a rare tropical system brought thunderstorms which sparked hundreds of fires all at the same time. That is in contrast to previous years where the vast majority of the fires, including the most destructive ones, were human-caused (often caused by power lines, but a few sparked by vehicles, and in the case of the largest fire in California history, a man hammering a metal spike into the ground generating sparks).
Add on to that more frequent droughts and higher temperatures in recent years and you have a recipe for disaster.
Add on to that more frequent droughts and higher temperatures in recent years and you have a recipe for disaster.
I haven't followed what Newsom has done about it. But as the article says, PG&E had to pay a $13.5B settlement, and being a monopoly with a regulated ROI, that must cost us. Also pleaded guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter since the fire destroyed entire cities.
I think for the horrible job they're doing, we deserve lower rates. They still make a profit.
The "pyromaniacs" were lightning strikes. Last year it was a downed power line, and the year before it was sparks from a blown tire.
Wow. They're sounding crooked as ever! I'd agree on the lower rates. A company that brings in as much as they do...its unacceptable to have the issues they have. Also, PG&E having some competition would be a benefit to Californians...
The storms were a double edged sword. Rain? Always welcome in California! Lightning? Not so much. And the rain that came with it CLEARLY wasn't enough. There are some occasions where I miss living in California. But I sure do NOT miss the wildfires. Heart sunk a little when I heard one was burning in my hometown, but the last thing I heard about it was the evacuation orders related to that particular fire had been lifted (as of yesterday afternoon, is what I heard).
The answer is a lot to unpack due to politics. The Camp Fire was PG&E through and through.
Several years ago, a huge SoCal fire was caused by the CHP placing flares on a tollroad to make room for an accident cleanup. A truck ran over one of the flares and it flung into the brush on the side of the road during the dry season. Not smart. It was daylight, and we should have state guidelines on flare usage. You can't just put out a flare once it's lit.
Countless other fires started from ignorance. Modern culture tells us to stress self love and saying life is rough, just do stuff that is easier for you, it never tells us to be aware of your surroundings and to think ahead.
Fuel for these fires sometimes is due to well intentions gone wrong. The orders to stop clearing up dead undergrowth out of environmental concerns by the Forest Service should have been revisited eons ago.
Yeah, I think preventing starting a fire isn't an option. Fires can and do start all the time everywhere for random reasons. Just need to be prepared, and that begins with clearing the undergrowth as you said.
That and Paradise was clearly not fireproof enough. It's insane that a fire could spread quickly enough to kill so many people in an urban area. Normally fires aren't dangerous to people unless they're defying evacuation to defend their property.
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Here is a map that shows the current air quality for the USA, Alaska, Hawaii and some locations in Canada, Mexico.
see https://fire.airnow.gov. (USFS Fire Map and Smoke Map)
A lot more localized data points compared to other maps the news uses. For example you can see all the individual monitors in Cupertino and their readings.
see https://fire.airnow.gov. (USFS Fire Map and Smoke Map)
A lot more localized data points compared to other maps the news uses. For example you can see all the individual monitors in Cupertino and their readings.
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PurpleAir is another good one. Updated in real time: https://www.purpleair.com/map?opt=1/mAQI/a10/cC0#6.69/37.629/-122.159
Just a FYI but Purple air seems to shows inaccurate readings for this area (comparing). It should be yellow results for Mountain View -> Santa Clara as a example, instead the measurements are 120 to 150 in Mountain View< CA?
A alternative is https://www.baaqmd.gov see map for air quality prediction at this time.
Update I was looking closer and see USFS maps shows mostly purple air sensors, still there was something whacked about PurpleAir vs USFS which seemed to had current readings. Currently Air Quality went to very bad around here. Try comparing the two when our air quality is better.
A alternative is https://www.baaqmd.gov see map for air quality prediction at this time.
Update I was looking closer and see USFS maps shows mostly purple air sensors, still there was something whacked about PurpleAir vs USFS which seemed to had current readings. Currently Air Quality went to very bad around here. Try comparing the two when our air quality is better.
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