Difference between the fires and Katrina

[LakeAriel]

They aren't all wealthy, neither are most dirt poor like in Louisiana..I was glad to see the evacuees have water and have their pets with them in the shelters.

 

[Fitswimmer]

It's the same reason that Florida got through the "year of the four hurricanes" in much better shape. They had local government that acted at the first sign of potential trouble. The power trucks were rolling in from the North while the hurricanes were still far away, they didn't wait until the things hit land before they started getting help ready.

According to my Floridian family members, Florida learned after Andrew that FEMA was worth nothing and that they needed to take care of things themselves FIRST.

 

[Faerie]

That is so true Fitswimmer - At least here in SE Florida we know the hurricane drill. We know what to do, what to buy and we do it.

I know of a couple family in SCa and they are not rich by any means and have had to evacuate. Lucky for them, friends able to take them in.

 

[WatchinCaptKangaroo]

Sadly this isn't the first "firestorm" and I doubt it will be the last. And our local agencies and government know what they are doing.

Yes, Malibu is a *rich area* (and the media listing celebrities who have to evacuate isn't helping). The areas in the Santiago Canyon fire are "average to upper" areas but quite a few areas in San Diego are very poor areas (Chula Vista) or very working class (Fallbrook - which is just behind Camp Pendleton).

We have 4 seasons in CA. Fire, flood/mudslide, earthquake and riot. If we have rain this winter we will have a bunch of slides.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters. And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

 

[NewJersey]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters. And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

...waiting for a few posters heads to explode after that one.

(FTR, I totally agree).

 

[ducklite]

And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

 

[Sthronds]

As a born and raised Californian I can tell you first hand that we are not all wealthy. California is just like any other state, we run the gamut from homeless to billionaire and everything in between. The difference like many said is that we are prepared for fires. They happen every year. We had one burning near us since last spring and now another is burning near that. The other difference is the nature of the disaster. While Katrina hit a huge area affecting people in a few states, the fires are at this point localized in So. Cal. This means that the rest of the state and neighboring states are able to assist. It's weird to know whats happening and yet be at work, with the only problems locally being the air quality.

 

[disneyfan67]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters. And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

Well said and very true.

 

[eclectics]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters.

Exactly. California seems to have it's act together in that regard. Louisianna was a debacle, from Nagin all the way up to FEMA and Bush.
Prayers for all those affected in CA. Hopefully the weather will be more forgiving tomorrow.

 

[Darth Cupcake]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters. And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

ITA.
(Eeek, two hot buttons for me: Mayor MIA Nagin and the Dept of Homeland Security. I just got off a cruise ship and had to deal with Dept of Homeland INsecurity. It was a joke.

 

[Geoff_M]

While the comparison may not be 100% fair due to the fact that the folks at SD have running water and power, it's interesting to see the AP is also drawing contrasts:

Civility Reigns at San Diego Stadium

Oct 23, 7:40 AM (ET)

By SCOTT LINDLAW (AP)

SAN DIEGO (AP) - Like Hurricane Katrina evacuees two years earlier in New Orleans, thousands of people rousted by natural disaster fled to the NFL stadium here, waiting out the calamity and worrying about their homes.

The similarities ended there, as an almost festive atmosphere reigned at Qualcomm Stadium.

Bands belted out rock 'n' roll, lavish buffets served gourmet entrees, and massage therapists helped relieve the stress for those forced to flee their homes because of wildfires.

"The people are happy. They have everything here," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared Monday night after his second Qualcomm tour.

Although anxieties ran high, the misery index seemed low as the celebrity governor waded through the mob. Scarcely a complaint was registered with him.

"Oooh, I got a picture!" shrieked Olivia Beard of Ocean Beach, one of hundreds who pressed toward Schwarzenegger with camera phones snapping.

The fires destroyed some 500 homes and 100 businesses in San Diego County, the greatest swath of destruction in a series of Southern California blazes that began Sunday.

Of the more than 250,000 people forced from their homes, volunteer coordinators estimated that 10,000 took shelter at Qualcomm, home of the San Diego Chargers. Others camped out in hotels, with friends and family and in other shelters scattered throughout the city.

With the stadium housing evacuees, the Chargers were flying to Arizona Tuesday to practice at the Arizona Cardinals' headquarters for the rest of the week. The team is scheduled to host Houston on Sunday, but said it was too early to know how the fires would affect that game.

At Qualcomm, thousands of tents, many set up by relief organizations, provided temporary roofs, while hundreds of people slept on open-air cots. Some elderly evacuees were housed in stadium club boxes.

Aggressive efforts by disaster-response officials to bring supplies helped ensure civility. A heavy police contingent and National Guard troops with automatic weapons stood by just in case.

The New Orleans evacuees had dragged themselves through floodwaters to get to the Louisiana Superdome in 2005, and once there endured horrific conditions without food, sanitation or law enforcement.

But these evacuees drove to the expansive parking lots in the San Diego suburbs. The worst that most endured in their exodus was heavy traffic and smoky haze.

But like those who fled in New Orleans, some will have lost their homes.

Several said they had narrowly escaped devastating fires in 2003 and shrugged off the inconveniences of sleeping at a stadium.

"You have to deal with it, right?" said Ashwani Kernie, who, along with six family members, had been evacuated from his Rancho Bernardo home.

"You can deal with it, or you can whine about it," he said while erecting a tent in Qualcomm's parking lot, as temperatures hovered comfortably in the low 70s.

Still, there was widespread anxiety about the fates of homes and belongings left behind. Many had packed up hastily as flames approached.

"They're scared, they're sad, they're losing their homes. They just want to relax and go to sleep," Megan Malan, a massage therapist, said as she rubbed the back of a man wearing a firefighter's T-shirt.

She had little in the way of material goods to offer to the victims, so she provided her professional services, for free, to nervous evacuees.

Television sets hung from the rafters for the benefit of football fans, but on this evening, it was anything but "Monday Night Football" that drew their interest.

Hundreds sat in the stands watching the sets, transfixed as news programs broadcast images of destruction. Among them was Bruce Fowler, whose home in the Scripps Ranch neighborhood had survived fires in 2003.

That fall, wildfires killed 22 people, destroyed nearly 3,600 homes and blackened more than 743,000 acres of brush and timber in Southern California, including blazes near Fowler's home.

"Every couple of years, you don't want to go through this worry," Fowler said, sipping a root beer. "I never thought I'd be in a place like this, getting handouts."

Most people seemed happy for the free food and drink. A Hyatt hotel catered one buffet, offering chicken with artichoke hearts and capers in cream sauce, jambalaya and shredded-beef empanadas.

Ester Francis, 90, clutched her cane as her son set up a pair of cots next to a large trash bin.

She does not know what she'll return to when the smoke clears, but said she was grateful for the generosity of strangers. Qualcomm did feel something like a party, she said.

"Everyone's so friendly," Francis said. "I guess it's making us all feel secure at a time when we all feel so insecure." Link

 

[dgaston]

I started a thread (now on page 2) asking for prayers for the evacuees. My brother had to leave his home in Santiago Canyon last night. His wife had the two teens and was stopping at Mervyns to buy them clothes -- no time to pack. My brother had the 2 cats, Newfoundland dog, and the boys' instruments (an alto sax and viola). The battery was dead in the van and he couldn't wait to pack anything else. They can't afford it but are staying at the Residence Inn in Irvine (accepts pets). And he tells me this fire was ruled arson by the fire marshall. I don't know if he'll have a home to return to. These are NOT wealthy people.

I hope FEMA doesn't screw this up too badly.

 

[What the Heck]

Like others have said, the difference is local and state level preparedness. Unlike Louisiana and NO leaders, these people don't have their heads in the sand about natural disasters. And you know you can't count on FEMA for anything except to screw things up. That seems to be the theme with the Department of Homeland Security.

Well said.

Funny, but when I posted things like this during Katrina, pointing out that it wasn't mostly Bush's fault, I was told that it was so obvious that it was Bush's fault that they wouldn't spend their time discussing it with me. It was more fun to just bash him.

 

[basas]

This has happened countless times in SoCal.. The last time was in 2003..Ca knows the drill..

Exactly, not to mention the posters complaining about the Katrina response and pushing for more effective responses in the future are the same ones claiming a better response now would be just because the victims are wealthly. So basically, no win for the government.

 

[pittypat]

Isn't it just possible that governments (from local all the way to federal) and FEMA actually LEARNED something from Katrina?

 

[basas]

Isn't it just possible that governments (from local all the way to federal) and FEMA actually LEARNED something from Katrina?

Of course not. It's just because they're wealthy.

 

[JennyMominRI]

Isn't it just possible that governments (from local all the way to federal) and FEMA actually LEARNED something from Katrina?

No, it has nothing to do with Katrina..It has to do with the fact that the Ca has dealt with this over and over again themselves.. We went through fires of this size in 2003.. Like I said, this is part of life in California..Fires in the fall, mud slides in the winter, earthquakes etc. Southern Ca is a beautiful place but every 2-3 year nature takes a good whack at it.. Californinians know how to deal with this this...People replaced their shake shingle roofs with other types due to fire hazzards. Local areas regularly do controlled burns. Warnings get issued when there is even an inkling this could happen... There is planty of preparation for this sort of thing.

 

[bsnyder]

At this stage of the disaster, it's most definitely a difference in the preparedness of the local and state officials. It's like night and day, from the situtation in LA. Unfortunately, there are other cities that I can think of that wouldn't fare well in a huge disaster, because the local government isn't even functioning well under "normal" conditions.

I'm very heartened to see how well California is coping. My son is in school in L.A. (not effected by the fires, fortunately) but ever since Katrina I've had an increased fear of the earthquake threat there, and how easily the aftermath could become total chaos. I actually called him during the Katrina coverage and told him to take note that if the situtation ever called for it, that he should be pro-active, and not just wait around for "those in charge" to take care of him.

 

[LakeAriel]

While the comparison may not be 100% fair due to the fact that the folks at SD have running water and power, it's interesting to see the AP is also drawing contrasts:

The fact that evacuees had no drinking water ( Katrina) for 5 days and many died due to dehydration in the USA is what disturbs me the most..Dehydration causes a myriad of mental and physical problems, not the least of which is death. The other thing that I can't accept is the fact people's loved ones rotted for more then a year in their attics.
There is enough blame to go around...the victims, some who could have evacuated but didn't, the local officials and the state officials.
The prize still goes to "Heck of a job Brownie"...drum roll please, our commander and chief, the decider, George W Bush.