California on Fire, Again

[Image of the Sylmar fire from LAT]

California is officially under a state of emergency. Multiple fires, hundreds of homes lost, thousands evacuated, freeways closed, hurricane-strength winds, and potential losses of electricity make it sound like the end of the world in California, again. If it sounds like these wildfires are becoming more frequently, costly, and damaging, apparently they are. I have not read through it all yet but this LA Times article has an interesting breakdown about the growth and cost of wildfires.

I am still in shock about how quickly these fires escalated. Yesterday, the only major fire was the Montecito fire, which is next to Santa Barbara--where I worked over the summer and where Alex's family lives. Today I wake up this morning to hear about two more fires. The Sylmar fire is near my dad's work and closed the freeways going to my house. And the Orange County fire is near my mom and dad's families. I am starting to think that we attract fires wherever we go.

Thanks for everyone who has checked in to see if people I know are ok. Luckily all of my family and our friends are safe. Unfortunately this is not the case for thousands of people. It must be awful to lose one's home, especially right before the holidays, and scary to be one of the thousands of people evacuated right now. If I could send this rain in DC over to California, I would. Instead I'll just send over prayers and good vibes. Hopefully things will get under control soon. Eternal gratitude goes out once again to all the firefighters and those who help with the emergency efforts.