Orange County Fire Chief: "Had We Had More Air Resources, We Would Have Been Able To Control This Fire,"

"If the weather cooperates, maybe we can turn the tide," he said.

Crews were anticipating an injection of additional firefighters and equipment from other states, mostly throughout the West. Frustration over the firefighting effort began to emerge Tuesday when a fire official said not enough had been done to protect homes.

Orange County Fire Chief Chip Prather told reporters that firefighters' lives were threatened because too few crews were on the ground. He said a quick deployment of aircraft could have corralled a massive blaze near Irvine.

"It is an absolute fact: Had we had more air resources, we would have been able to control this fire," he said.

The fires have burned 410,000 acres, or about 640 square miles, causing at least $100 million in damage. Twenty-one firefighters and at least 24 others have been injured. One person was killed by the flames, and the San Diego medical examiner's officer listed four other deaths as connected to the blazes.

Read entire story here.

Comments

[PollM]

.
Here we go again, lots of BS by BUSH and FEMA. The truth is, FEMA response is too late and in-adequate.

Air Resource by the Federal Government insufficient Orange County Fire Chief Says, Is the Federal Government faltering again? ----> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=784.

[Ammobob]

He didn't exactly say that. It's right in the HuffPo Lead-in.

[TXfemmom]

The main problem was that the National Guard units are in Iraq, AND THEY TOOK THEIR EQUIPMENT WITH THEM.

Then, when California needed them, they lacked the personnel and the equipment.

Our greatest threat is from within...t­he Bush administration.

[TonyaDLuv]

Have you fool Libs noticed that there is no news coming out of Iraq? According to the liberals in the media, "no violence = no news."

WE ARE WINNING IN IRAQ, SO NOW THE LIB MEDIA IS SILENT.

What a pathetic state of affairs you Libs are in.

[JaneC]

If anyone would be purposely silencing that news it would be Commander Codpiece. What show the troops have accomplished their mission (which they did years ago) and risk having them brought home? Not on the Chimps life!

[StillAmused]

Yes, ladies and germs, it's the lovely Toenail Deluxe, once again demonstrating her razor-sharp powers of deduction.­..

In today's instalment, Ms. Deluxe turns off her radio and TV, burns the newspaper without reading it and concludes, strictly based on her keen instinct and private conversations with the voices in her head, that there's "no news coming out of Iraq" and "we are winning."

I think it's really touching that the psych ward allows the more verbal patients a little time online.

[SupremeIdiot]

There definitely are killings still going on so how can you say there is no violence? We're still losing more than one soldier a day. Not as bad as May when we were losing over 4/day but there have been lulls like this every year. Are the Sunnis and Shias still killing each other? Yes.

I can attribute a slight reduction to the fact that we've segregated all the communities with walls and there are no more mixed Sunni/Shiite neighborhoods left. The fact that the Mahdi army has been orderd not to attack anyone is also a contributing factor.

Of course having 2 million less citizens in the country doesn't hurt either.

Eventually one side will win out and there will be no killings. Is that a victory when there are no more Sunnis or Shias in the country and then one side can set up their version of a theocracy? You would say yes. You are a moron.

[gsuescum]

Keep drinking your KoolAid fool.

[azureblue]

This is the typical Republican:
No brains
No supporting evidence
No solutions
Parroted talking points

Just:
Lies and half truths
Red Herrings
Personal attacks
No calling
Hate
Trying to distract from their own miserable failures, corruption, & hypocrisies.

Jeez these people are tiresome.

[bruceblanco]

"Bush Working To Make California Disaster The "Anti-Katrina" - of course chucklenutz is "briskly" assisting San Diego and Orange County. Those are all primarily Republican districts.

[GladysKnightsPIP]

Perhaps now you folks might get an idea of how Iraqi folks feel when you wipe out their homes and kill their relatives.

[Ammobob]

We burning them out, too? That's why our CA and Federal firefighting air resources are over there.

[azureblue]

Yep
And that's why Louisiana's highly specialized swamp vehicles were in in Iraq when the levees broke. Bush ordered them over there. As if there would be swamps in Iraq.

Bush never changes. he just repeats his failures over and over again.

Think he'll hide from this one, too?

[rwe]

is man made global warming wiping out their villges?

[hydenorhare]

Saw the Lt. Governor (D-CA) on Hardball yesterday.

Surprisingly, it took almost a minute for Chris to coax the guy into blaming Bush because the Guard is in Iraq.

Amazing restraint for Democrat.

But after that he couldn't help himself.

[VOTER]

True. He told the truth.

[JaneC]

I'd like to suggest a round of applause for those if us who, day after day, are subjected to the rantings of the very bottom of society's barrel and still are able to smile and hope for more for our country.
***************

Meet the Last Bush Supporters

When you suck as badly as George W. Bush, not even the GOP candidates will mention your name - unless it's an insult. And yet, poll after poll finds that 30% of Americans who can manage to pick up a ringing telephone say they approve of this miserable presidency. Who are these people? They're the people who write angry messages to the Worst President Ever website, that"s who.

Last time we checked up on our nation"s most eloquent defenders of the Bush Administration, they were mostly half-naked MySpace losers with homoerotic self-portraits.

http://wonkette.com/politics/our-moronic-nation/meet-the-last-bush-supporters-311984.php

[N678]

http://www.canadaka.net/pic-8037.html

[JaneC]

Perfect. ;)

[CommieKazi]

I'd like to suggest a round of applause for those if us who, day after day, are subjected to the rantings of the very bottom of society's barrel and still are able to smile and hope for more for our country.
***************

Yes, the non-liberals deserve that applause.

[chronic]

These are the same freaks that vote republican over and over and time and time again.

TAX CUTS TAX CUTS TAX CUTS


BILLIONS 4 IRAQ BILLIONS 4 IRAQ


AMERICAN BRIDGES COME TUMBLING DOWN


.......BUT WE MUST END GAY MARRIAGES TO PROTECT OUR OWN?


This nation is sick!

[CommieKazi]

Move

[jfredmuggs]

You first.

[gsuescum]

You're part of the problem. You're sick and need help. We should put you in an institution like... the US Army and send you off to Iraq

[azureblue]

CommieKazi gives money to communists­..

[TWOSHORT]

As a resident of the great state of Ca we will BE BACK!!!!It may look bad now but we have a great governor who know's how to lead and get thing's done!Un like our current president who still hasn't rebuilt New Orleans.An­d a big Thank you to Ca. Sen Dunkin Hunter.Mov­ed heaven and Earth to find us help.

[ConcernedAboutRFuture]

My thoughts are with you and I hope you and ALL Californians make it through this disaster safely.

[Fuji]

And the animals. Save the wildlife.

[Doug]

What's interesting is how San Diego (a conservative city) takes care of their problems while Orange county (liberal yuppies) blames everyone else for their problem.

[VOTER]

Orange County is a REPUBLICAN STRONGHOLD, IDIOT.

[BeerHolder]

Orange County is Conservative Reagan country. Better get out your red state/blue state map and magnifying glass.

[SupremeIdiot]

How did you possibly get that from the article?

Does your neocon colored glasses see everything in political terms?

Or are you just a moronic stooge?

[nastywolf]

You dumb ass idiot! Orange County is the GOP's most important stronghold in California. Compared to IT, San Diego's a hippie commune.

Stop lying to try and make political points. Disasters like this are non-partisan.

[BeerHolder]

Whereas you love to blame the victim. "Too bad your wife died in that car crash. Should have checked those tires."

Typical GOP blather.

[KarlRoves3rdchin]

Of course Bush is jumping all over this (unlike he did with Katrina) the people in San Diego are rich white Republicans, not poor black Democrats!!! The GOP neo cons are all about the money honey -always have been -always will be!!

[CommieKazi]

Bullshit. The people in SD/OC evacuated when ordered. They werent sitting around waiting for Nagin to take their hands and put them on buses that he couldnt get drivers for.

There is no way to fight a hurricane. There are ways to fight fire, especially before it starts. But the people in New Orlns did nothing. They didnt deserve it, but they refused to act on their own behalf, and elected incompetent losers to lead them, then didnt listen when ordered to evacuate.

[neoconpig]

Thank you for saying it commiekazi. new orleans had several days to get out. they did NOTHING. is it because they were poor. seems to me like poor people even know how to walk their lazy butts to higher ground or shelters.

[jimpryor99]

Actually, he's going because he got so criticized for not going to New Orleans. So he's going to San Diego. I guess the criticism should stop. Nope. Here's a clue: Him going to either one is stupid. He can't do ANYTHING about either event.

[neoconpig]

yeah i agree, neocons are all about money. all the dems in washington hate money. hillary is very poor, her husban gets 6 or 7 figures for speeches. they don't care about making money. idiot. look it up. some of the richest people in washington are limo-libs. they don't care about poor. they just want their vote. period. clinton was in office for 8 years. what did they do to pull all the poor out of the gutter. NOTHING.

[konchster]

Well this blows the Katrina theory that no help cause they where poor black people. Wait!!!! They where rich liberal movie stars Shrub hates them more than he does poor black people BAHHH BAHH HEE HEE

[SanFran1]

Al Gore should do a fly over in his Gulfstream.
What a joke.

[VOTER]

I agree. He would arrive before Boo-sh and steal The Killer

Chimp's photo op.

[sarcasticennui]

According to the poseur chancres, it is only refered to as a "Luxury Private Gulfstrean Jet."

[MetalCanuck]

Iraq war has made the lack of resources possible. I hate to see what would happen if the big earth quake came to California.

[CommieKazi]

Thats right. All our earthquake fighting equipment is in Iraq.

Or at least thats what Dan Blather clones will be saying,because Harry Reid said it.

[neoconpig]

why are my posts getting scrubbed. have i not spewed enough anit american shit.

[Grousefeather]

What a stupid thing to say! Of course, if there was a million helicopters with water buckets and 2 million pumper fire trucks the fires could have be controled. And if we had a million troops in Iraq the war would be over, and if we had more security at our airports on 9/11 the attack could have been prevented, and if my dog hadn't stopped to scratch he would have caught the rabbit...

[BeerHolder]

Having a severe water shortage isn't exactly a plus nor is over population.

[gorideabike]

More emergency equipment may be useful, but it will not stop this from happening again in a few years.
There is a fire adapted ecology in this area. The oily brush grows thicker each year until the fuel load reaches a critical level. The hot dry weather and Santa Ana winds factor into creating extreme burning cnditions. Most any fire that starts will quickly spread out of control, typically being measured in the thousands of acres magnitude. These brush fires can blow up canyons and hills at 40 mph. They jump 8 lane freeways and carry burning embers for miles. These fire storms can incinerate a housing development in minutes. Prevention of property loss quickly becomes a secondary concern to public safety.
CA burns every year. More fire equipment may help with earthquake response or some of the other disasters that this area produces, but it can not stop brush fires. A brush fire stops when it runs out of fuel or the wind blows it back into a burned area. Air tankers sometimes can help save property, but these fires are a major force of nature. The ground fire control units know better than to attempt direct control efforts against anything other than small incipient fires, and only then when their safety can be assured.
As people continue to build homes in these areas, they can expect more of the same. 0r better, figure out some more ways to protect people from this predictable event. Like fire breaks, prescribed burns, or something else local experts should be able to implement.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

[DottiAgingSafely]

I know for a fact that between 12-14 firebombers were on the ground in Idaho and California not being called for use. It may be the winds at times were too high for them to fly, but do we have a national registry or something so that when places like California may need more planes they know where to call them?