You may have heard about the wave of wildfires that are threatening several communities in Southern California due in part to recent strength of the Santa Ana winds.
One comment I’ve heard in some of the coverage has caught my attention. From the International Herald Tribune:
In San Diego County as many as 10,000 homes were under evacuation orders, but authorities said many homeowners were refusing to leave. This forced firefighters to divert their attention to rescuing residents in danger of being engulfed in smoke and fire.
Firefighters are being blocked from their jobs because folks aren’t getting the heck away when ordered to by officials? Jeez!
Is it wrong that I’m left to wonder if California emergency officials could stand to take a lesson from Gulf Coast powers-that-be—if residents refuse to comply with a mandatory evacuation order, they’re on their own…other than being asked to wear toe-tags (dog tags, I guess, would be the fireproof equivalent) to identify them once the disaster has passed.
