California has seen its fair share of fires yet the recent wildfires in Big Sur continues to top them all. Up to date, 1,000 fires have spread destroying 28 homes. Firefighters have now evacuated over 250 homes and continue their efforts to protect a Buddhist retreat in Los Padres National Park. The dry summer weather usually makes California prone to wildfires but lightening storms seemed to have triggered this recent uproar. The current issue and the issue in the past has been the lack of trained firefighters. With so many fires continuing to spread, California is simply not equipped to control them all.
Thankfully, President Bush has taken action. On June 29th, Bush declared an emergency for Northern California. He is providing the state with financial aid and additional equipment from the Federal Emergency Management Agency including 17,000 firefighters from various states. As his term comes to an end, President Bush is facing a lot of criticism. The public continues to meticulously watch his every last steps and actions. In this case, I hope the public is watching and applauding Bush, because it is his actions that have provided California with the aid needed to ease this natural disaster.
Yet, nature continues to take its course despite firefighters’ incessant efforts. My sympathy goes out to those who have been affected by the relentless fires.
– Priya Kumar
