A crude rule of thumb for estimating wildfire spread speed is 10% of the wind speed. This is at best only a very rough estimate and of course there are many exceptions. Large fires can also create their own winds.
@sage91436 that's not far at all. My fingers are crossed for you.
I just hope people of power will actually lose their jobs over this, to prevent the next one from happening. How unprepared the state of Cali, mainly Los Angeles area was and is in inexcusable. No water in the hydrants? No cleaning of the debris/canvas in the forests? No warnings? Not enough fire fighters? Cutting out 20 million in the fire budget? Fire insurance being canceled? All the water that they collected sent back to the Pacific? This is a 100 billion dollar catastrophe...
Why, it’s almost as if our entire system has been compromised, and our leaders are too busy serving the billionaires to serve us.
@PeopleLikeUs @brownglucose Totally agree that they they are not new- however they are a distressing sign in becoming more and more frequent that something needs to change.
Wish I could do more for the people on here affected- as I know mere words aren’t enough. Know that you are cared for, nonetheless- is a scary time. For others not affected (yet) in the area- I agree with @SunshineHug - please make an escape plan, be aware and have a go to bag.
@PeopleLikeUs So far, three of my friends have had to evacuate from the LA area. One can literally see the fires from her home in the hills. Thankfully, they’re all safe, but each of them described feeling the terrifying, intensifying whiplash of it all. That whiplash is climate change—the extreme weather and disasters are hitting harder and more unpredictably, and unfortunately people are going to navigate crises that feel like they’re escalating faster than anyone can process.
https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/floods-droughts-fires-hydroclimate-whiplash-speeding-up-globally
@brownglucose - I’m so sorry to hear about your friends having to evacuate. I’m relieved to know they’re safe. Seeing the fires from her home must be an unimaginable experience. It drives home how deeply personal and immediate these crises have become for so many of us.
You’ve hit the nail on the head with “whiplash.” The term perfectly captures how extreme weather events escalate, often faster than we can fully grasp. The link you shared about hydroclimate whiplash is spot on. It’s a clear reminder that we’re not just facing one-off disasters but a compounding crisis that demands urgent attention.
The resilience of communities facing these challenges is incredible, but we shouldn’t have to keep navigating this kind of chaos. Addressing climate change on both local and global levels is critical to reducing the frequency and intensity of these events.
Dear mods: Are “discussions” about the Climate Change treated as political speech in the forums, like masks and vaccines are?
I work in an office with an insurance company, they just mentioned yesterday that State Farm is pulling out of California. It is just hard to imagine when things seem already unimaginable, that they could do that.
@CharlesGrove If somebody has an issue, they'll flag it and the mods will do what they do.
@Hollydollhugs
Maybe this whole living in a system that treats human misery and suffering as profit opportunities is a bad idea…
@Hollydollhugs Same thing Florida is going through. If there's a chance the thing they are insuring against might actually happen, they want nothing to do with the place.
My cousins who live in the area are safe. I hope everyone who needs help finds help soon. Looks like the community is coming together as allways in such situations and people are reaching out to offer help.
Major Insurers have been pulling out CA since 2021 due to increased business risk and the inability to raise premiums to match. Same goes for FL and the southwest where, in additional to natural disasters, insurance companies were also victims of numerous fraudulent claims perpetrated lawyers and contractors.
The press conference with the so-called mayor was almost as disheartening as the disaster itself if you ask me. Your city is on fire and you're reading a script???!!! What a show of leadership that was.
And from what I'm reading this morning; Arson is not off the table as a possible cause of this so let's hold off a bit on conversations about Climate Change FKA Global Warming FKA The hole in the Ozone Layer.
Anyone want to take odds on the over/under for the number of coastal city disasters this year?
Do we go by country, or the globe overall?
Let’s define “disaster” as any geological or meteorological phenomenon/event that causes the death of 10+ humans, and/or $250,000,000.00 in property damages.
And “coastal city” will be defined as any metropolitan area within physical sight of a coastline (Oceans, Seas, Inland Seas like Ural, Superior, etc…) that has at least 200 residents and/or 12+ “permanent” structures.
I would put the United States over/under at 10.
Globally it will be in the scores, so, let’s call it 90.
(By the way, my guesses are extremely hopeful. The actual climate models have this year at 25 for the US and 390 for the globe. But they also count individual communities…)
The insurance companies believe in global warming, and the incoming constant related disasters, as you can clearly see by their new policies and strategies.
Read your policies, and move to elevation or inland if you can.
It will get MUCH worse from here.
My attitude is, put out the damn fires, then argue over what caused them.
If there even is a new policy.... Yea one thing they for sure believe in is "shareholder value". Insurer of last resort to the "rescue". People have been using those for few years now already in FL and CA.
Get help from someone you trust with reading and understanding it, if needed.
@WriterGF easier said than done when you don’t have the resources to do so
Fortunately, my family in the L.A. area are safe and as yet unharmed. Shout out to @TheFunCartel for starting this thread and for posting sources for donations.
@lonelytauros Yup.
Looters are one of the lowest lifeforms on the planet--and should be treated as such.
I took these after lunch today, a block from my friends place i crashed at last night.
These are from this evening when i was picking up last minute things before I Evacuate to San Diego tomorrow
Saw this news headline this morning: https://nypost.com/2025/01/09/us-news/kenneth-fire-in-west-hollywood-hills-being-probed-as-arson-1-in-custody-reports/
Cliff's notes version - homeless guy with a "blowtorch" (also described in some news reports as a "flamethrower") was going around setting fire to whatever struck his fancy. Local residents restrained him till police arrived.
This is another form of "climate change" - a climate where dangerous mentally ill people are tossed out of the various systems (both penal and hospital) and allowed to cause harm to others. I really wish I had a solution to this sort of thing.
@Jubal I agree. Most of fires before this catastrophe in Los Angeles county/ area are started by homeless people. I’ve seen fire map origin maps, and they don’t make any sense. It make you think they are being started by arsonists or something very sinister to take advantage of the dry and windy conditions.
🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂 I just have to say thank you … I am so beyond grateful and thankful and overwhelmed by a couple of the pros that have reached out to me (one in particular) and donated to me and have encouraged some of their cuddle clients to donate to me as well. I’ve been trying to leave LA to go to San Diego. I was without power for a few days and the air and water here are not safe and I have enough health issues already.
So I’m thankful … I was able to pay someone to replace the brakes on my jeep and now I can get on the road safely tomorrow.
But even more so than appreciating the monetary donations … the words of encouragement and the connections for when I get there and for my emotional health is just beyond anything I could have expected.
I’m new to LA and don’t know many people Here and I am not one to ask for help So this sweet Angel who I don’t want to name but if you want to say hi in comments please do. You have made me feel that I’m not alone and I am so deeply grateful for you!!
🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂
It has been pretty crazy here. I had gone to Burbank to pick up a friend and it was unreal how strong the winds were and how many trees were blown over knocking down power lines. Thankfully my area is not on fire (this time…) and only minimal power interruptions but I’d imagine a good number of people here have been directly affected. I hope they are ok.
@CharlieBear I’m so glad to hear you’re ok and safe. When they notice came out about how the water is not only not safe to drink but it’s not safe to bathe in …it got me Thinking about the pathogens carcinogens in the air and water… I’ve battled cancer a few times already… I had ChatGPT research how long I would need to leave for to make a significant difference for air and water quality, it said that leaving for 4-7 days would make a big difference and make the trip to San Deigo worth it.
I’m from Michigan … we get a 5 minute warning about a tornado then it comes and Goes in 5 minutes time and then it’s over. This week has been so stressful not knowing from one moment to the next. Ok rambling over lol
Good morning ~ Today in the area of Pasadena where I live the air quality was finally back to a more normal index. The Eaton fire is north of me and still going but I am not long affected by the smoke and just praying for rain at this point. Several friends lost their homes, there is great need for help still if you have means to kick in a few bucks to causes.
This is the most current update as of today
Aprox 40,000 acres still burning amongst all the fires
This is crazy.