Hummmmm, maybe there's a reason for identifying flood, earthquake, and fire zones after all. And insurance companies continue to write policies for people living in many of these areas (and who pays when Momma Nature bitch slaps us? We all do in higher premiums). Now, what comparisons will be dredged up comparing the governments' response to this fire vs. Katrina, as well as the recovery efforts. Lots of fodder here for accusations of disparate treatment, even though the circumstances are substantially different (regarding the differences between evacuations and assistance rendered in this fire vs. New Orleans).

After Katrina, there was no shortage of individuals pondering the wisdom of rebuilding a city that sits at and below sea level. Maybe it's still a little early, but I have yet to hear a single grumbling about the wisdom of constantly restoring Malibu, an area well-known for earthquakes and wildfires.

FYI, Cooper is on his way to San Diego and is planning to do a live broadcast from there prior to the first part of his Planet in Peril special.

Nevermind Anderson Cooper, how long will it take all these California residents to transport
enough of the Pacific Ocean onto land in order
to extinguish the flames?

Again, I cannot stress strongly enough the problem of drought, etc. I think people should try to look at a map at some point in order to assess exactly how much territory these fires threaten to consume (most likely it is larger than the city in which you live), and how little time has transpired since they began. Much (but certainly not all) of the burned area is back country, which contains a lot of fuel (how much of that do you suggest we try to clear, by the way; and what do you do with the debris?). Winds are carrying embers horizontally at 50 knots, the evening pictures make the landscape resemble a foundry. People plant succulents and take down brush near their homes, and replace their roofs with fire retardant materials, but with conditions like these the embers fly for hundreds of feet, igniting houses from under the eaves.

I suggest criticism regarding preparatio­n/response is suspended (it would be seemly if, indeed, the delay lasted until the fires were extinguished).

(Note: I'm writing from San Diego) It is far too facile to leap to some partisan judgement regarding the fires here in Southern California. While it is true that fires happen here, the dimensions of these are not at all normal, and the devastation they have caused (and will continue to cause until atmospheric conditions change) reaches an astonishing scale.

I lived in St. Paul and worked in Minneapolis, thus I used the bridge which collapsed on a daily basis. Bridges we can and should maintain, and the government needs to attend to infrastructure.

Wildfires are a different story. The calculus regarding prolongued drought, aggressive development, Santa Ana wind conditions (which bring strong air currents at gusts of 50 knots with humidity levels at 8% and below) are devastating. Air support is untenable because of the winds, so all is left to ground crews who, because of the rough terrain, high temperatures, and fire bursts of 200 feet in the air, are left to try to protect some houses but cannot fight the bulk of the fire. As for government resources or any responsibilities that we might levy on the authorities, they seem to be doing alright. As of now, all they can do is communicate with people in danger and the various services to coordinate forces. Thus far, that is what has transpired.

Somewhere in the area of 250,000 households (yes, households, not people) have been evacuated. When we haven't the power to fight a natural disaster, that doesn't mean we have failed, and it certainly doesn't indict the government. Stay tuned to monitor the recovery -- then we may have a clue regarding progress.

Wow, total cynicism at work here.

But unfortunately well deserved especially concerning the press. Fire hazards are a well known topic around here, it's just that the gummint continually claims no money to fix it BEFORE there is a fire, yet somehow manages to come up with a hundred times the amount to fight the fires which are devasting beyond all normal reason.

Why do we have such a backwards government? Why is it experts are ignored while political cronies rake in the bucks for war profiteering?

My memory is not what it used to be, but doesn't New Mexico have a very advanced program for taking care of brush and old dead trees? One that has cut the threat of fires a great deal?