Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Top 10 L.A. Firestorm Flubs: Another Democrat Debacle

As if America needed another body blow, an abject lesson in "how not to govern" has been delivered to us by Democrats in California.

A state with a bigger budget than all but a few large countries has been unable to deal with a wildfire that started on January 7. Most regions of the world could have prevented and addressed a fire that started more than a week ago. But not California.

Here are the Top 10 reasons Democrats should never be allowed to govern again *:

  1. Water Management and Hydrant Availability: The incident with the Santa Ynez Reservoir being offline and empty highlighted a critical oversight in water supply management for firefighting. The reservoir had been taken offline to adhere to EPA mandates regarding bird poop. Ensuring adequate water pressure and availability in hydrants, especially during known high-risk fire seasons, should have been better managed.
  2. Budget Allocation for Fire Services: There were reports of significant budget cuts to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), which impacted the department's readiness and response capabilities. Proper funding for adequate staffing, equipment, and maintenance could have improved the response to the fires.
  3. Emergency Alert System Reliability: Erroneous evacuation alerts caused confusion and panic, indicating a need for better systems or protocols to ensure accurate and timely emergency communications.
  4. Fire Prevention and Preparedness: More proactive measures like clearing brush, implementing stricter building codes in high-risk areas, and preparing for the specific weather conditions known to exacerbate fire spread could have been prioritized.
  5. Coordination with Federal Agencies: While there was substantial federal assistance, earlier and more coordinated efforts with agencies like FEMA could have potentially led to a more robust initial response. Streamlining communication for quicker resource deployment might have been beneficial.
  6. Infrastructure Maintenance: The maintenance of infrastructure like reservoirs, fire-fighting vehicles, equipment, power lines, and roads should be continuously assessed to prevent failures during emergencies, which in this case included issues with water supply and potential fire starts from downed power lines.
  7. Evacuation Planning and Execution: The expansion of evacuation zones and the management of mass evacuations could have been more streamlined to ensure residents were moved out of danger zones more efficiently and with less confusion.
  8. Sanctuary State and Arson: As a "Sanctuary State" (a safe haven for illegal aliens), several criminals in the U.S. illegally have been arrested for setting fires and looting.
  9. Use of Technology for Fire Management: Investing in and deploying advanced technology like AI for fire detection, satellite mapping for real-time fire tracking, and drones for surveillance could have improved response strategies.
  10. Post-Fire Recovery Planning: Immediate steps towards recovery, including setting up relief centers, ensuring insurance processes are accessible, and planning for rebuilding that considers future fire risks, need to be expedited and well-organized to aid affected communities quickly.

In short, any aid to California from federal taxpayers must be overseen by @DOGE or a similar governance body. California's Democrat officials have proven negligent, incompetent and unqualified.

Follow me on X @directorblue and Substack @directorblue. * Assisted by Grok with snark added by me.

4 comments:

Veritas said...

Non of these reforms matter if the mindset of the officials and bureaucrats is you can't anger mother nature. Nor can you fight her. So offer up a virgin as a sacrifice to appease her. This is what we have seen for forty years. Why are there a reported 100 fire engines not operating? Why have other volunteer fire units not been allowed to operate in LA? Why haven't the military been used in a massive way? Its a coastal area why are there no fireboats? Why are arsonists being set free? Why aren't looters being shot on sight? If 50% of all fires are the result of the homeless why has California encouraged them? In short, play stupid games win stupid prizes. Will California wake up? Sure after it becomes Haiti.

directorblue said...

@veritas - true. Until Democrats understand science... it will be a problem. As George Carlin said, "The Earth isn't going anywhere, _we_ are"

Anonymous said...

I lived in Pacific Palisades 1957-1982. If I lived there now and knew the Santa Ynez reservoir was going to be out of service for a year, including through a full fire season, I would have lobbied to remove the damaged cover and fill it with non-potable water, isolated from the distribution system, to use as a fill site for water bombers. Like the nearby Encino reservoir was, which stopped the fire before it took out Brentwood.

Don in Oregon

commoncents said...

Tucker Carlson and Michael Shellenberger Break Down the California Fires - Video

https://commoncts.blogspot.com/2025/01/tucker-carlson-and-michael.html