WOW! 2025 So Cal FIRES!

[belmateo]

Lastest update about the fires is they are following leads to arsonists that started the fires and caught one already with a blowtorch in hand.

 

[Warren]

Been watching the bay all week. The winds are light and variable on this side of the bay. What David says is correct light and variable in areas except for the areas it isn't. However well intentioned there's just no time to haul away things open garage or not.


I have friends in private of communities up against acres of brush area. They are somehow magically exempt from brush clearing requirements that are a setback* requirement that fire Marshalls actually mail out that most of us with acreage are subject to. They state that the land owner is responsible for maintaining a " defensible space," Who's the land owner just beyond the property line? the state. The state prevents and demands inspection and permissions for a wetlands or property prior yet do none of their own mitigation.


My pal in a similar canyon and hillside brush area with a 20' setback a completely fenced planned urban development looks at acres of abutting brush he can do nothing about mitigating. I had recently asked him why he wasn't president of the H.O.A. and lobby his neighbors for a defensible space to be created about the development as most fire Marshalls dictate. Nobody can agree on or take the time to deal with the government rules and requirements to clear brush.
Interesting how nearby Camp Pendleton does controlled burns and bulldozes the heck out of the place even though they often set their own fires when firing live rounds etc.

If you haven't had enough of bad views.
Here's the Palisades burning over the hills between the ocean and Encino and Brentwood. Interesting how this has come after the affluent areas. 6AM shot.



* Setback is how close a home can be to a property line. H.O.A. Home owners association

A couple of members on CAT have offered storage to fellow members who are in danger and can get their cars out... Be great if members here with the spare capacity could offer the same.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

Hi Warren ... Only a 20' set back requirement? ... That ain't a defensible setback ! .. We have a place in the Piute mountains in Kern county and there's a 100' setback required that is inspected every year by CalFire and our HOA ... fines can be imposed if not cleared in a set time limit. Our place is pretty remote and in an upper canyon so I clear the brush and low hanging limbs out well past that. We've had fires come up the canyon and over the top of the ridge line and the thing that saved our place and our neighbors, some who live there full time is that everyone that owns property there clears well past that requirement every year.

....... David

 

[alpine_64]

* Setback is how close a home can be to a property line. H.O.A. Home owners association

It's a very sad event that is going on.. and there will be lessons hard learned

In 2009 in Melbourne we had the black Saturday fires, 173 lost their lives and other badly injured.. the fires moved so quickly and with such intensity and ember attacks so far spread that it jumped containment lines and people couldn't outrun them in cars.

It Buned 450,000 hectares (1,100,000 acres).

After the fires there was a royal commission into the causes but also how things could have been mitigated

There were complete rewriting of the building codes and re certification of the bushfire zones.

The new planning laws about construction type. Materials, what defences had to be incorporated were far reaching. I worked on projects with the new codes and it drastically changed the kind of homes and buildings you could design.

It's a very hard way to learn these lessons.. and often the reason people move to such areas is to have large areas of nature right next to their homes.. but unfortunately that's not a safe situation.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

I remember seeing that on the 'ol boob tube Michael ... Truly horrendous to watch ... Fireproof under laments, secure metal roofs and eve coverings help alot with flying amber's which is where alot of homes catch fire first, not perfect but helps. You'll notice alot of homes with Spanish tile on the roofs here(in town) and there spared sometimes when neighbors homes on both sides are gone.

....... David

 

[spmdr]

So Cal has been Fire Ally forever, and yet the Residential Building codes

PROHIBITED Metal roofs!

These days, ALL the new Fire stations have METAL Roofs!

.... and most commercial construction...

Buy stock in Metal Roof Co. DW

 

[SoCal'beaming]

So Cal has been Fire Alley forever, and yet the Residential Building codes

PROHIBITED Metal roofs!

These days, ALL the new Fire stations have METAL Roofs!

.... and most commercial construction...

Buy stock in Metal Roof Co.

Sad it's so here in town except for those "exceptions" ... It's encouraged where our place is in the mountains and has saved many homes and lives. They come in all kinds of designs and colors these days ... not just the old tin ones.

........... David

 

[Warren]

Boy I agree... was sitting with a friend looking across the street at an 90's home. It was complete with stucco facade that had cast foam cornices etc.
All that said I was forced to put "fire glass." per code. So get this.......
Tempered glass way more $$$ that regular low E type in vinyl windows.
Do you think that there's a difference on the vinyl melting and plate glass breaking or like your AS2 side glass in your car in little bits? Obviously plate glass in big sliding doors is better.

 

[puff4]

They’ve caught a couple of suspected arsonists, but it’s starting to look like the initial cause may have been a power issue, which would also explain the wide distribution of the fires. It seems the number of power faults during the high winds prior to the fires went from just a few per day (normal) to over 230 and more. There’s a thought that blowing winds pushed tree limbs into the wires, causing faults and fires to start. If this is the case, it’s not the first time, since the Dixie and Kincade fires were attributed to Pacific Gas & Electric, and they ended up paying over $55 million to avoid criminal prosecution. I don’t think they have near enough money to get out from under this one, if indeed it is their fault.

Power grid faults surged right before Los Angeles wildfires began: expert | Fox News

New data may provide vital clues in determining what may have ignited — or helped to proliferate — the wildfires

www.foxnews.com

 

[belmateo]

They’ve caught a couple of suspected arsonists, but it’s starting to look like the initial cause may have been a power issue, which would also explain the wide distribution of the fires. It seems the number of power faults during the high winds prior to the fires went from just a few per day (normal) to over 230 and more. There’s a thought that blowing winds pushed tree limbs into the wires, causing faults and fires to start. If this is the case, it’s not the first time, since the Dixie and Kincade fires were attributed to Pacific Gas & Electric, and they ended up paying over $55 million to avoid criminal prosecution. I don’t think they have near enough money to get out from under this one, if indeed it is their fault.

Power grid faults surged right before Los Angeles wildfires began: expert | Fox News

New data may provide vital clues in determining what may have ignited — or helped to proliferate — the wildfires

www.foxnews.com

We as Pacific Gas & Electric customers are paying the $55 million through rate hikes as well as the Gas explosion in San Bruno some years ago.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

We as Pacific Gas & Electric customers are paying the $55 million through rate hikes as well as the Gas explosion in San Bruno some years ago.

The power line that came down in our backyard has yet to be repaired ... This is a matter of concern for us .. We're serviced by G.W.P and at one time we had our own steam powered plant here which has been removed in recent years. The line that came down is not stranded wire, it's a solid copper one ... Probably original from the early 40's ... not sure, .. but maintenance doesn't seem to be a priority with the utility co.'s. ... though they did come out weeks ago just before the Santa Ana event to check the condition of the power poles themselves, not the lines ... first time I've been aware of them doing this here ... the timing is ?. Our youngest twin daughter is being held captive as is all her neighbors in an Altadena neighborhood near JPL, no power and the city is talking about shutting gas service off as well. Local law en"force"ment allows residents to leave for supplies but can't return once past there perimeter .. they have to hand the supplies off to people still within that perimeter. Her spouse found this out the hard way and had to walk in though a mountain trail ... he could have been arrested for trying to get home. Some of these things are not being reported by the mass (brain dead) media. Without getting too political here as this forum is about our cars ... it seems odd that the mayor of L.A. and that POS governor we have recently slashed the budgets for our fire departments and fire agencies by over a 100 million frog pelts, just saying! I'm truly PO'ed!! as should everyone be here in the state ... The winds here are just starting to pick up this morning ... hopefully not as much as last week.

..... Vented and feeling slightly better, David

 

[DanR]

Without getting too political here as this forum is about our cars ...

I think it is about our cars. A few years back another raging fire out near you destroyed a nice Alpine because of the idiots running the CA government.

 

[Warren]

Some cities prohibited everything but a red tile roof, namely one of the Palos Verdes peninsula ones. Yes I was around selling insurance and telling people. Gee whiz you're going to get surcharged because of that wood shake shingle roof. People would assume the risk or wait for a leak. 100% of the homes on my block were wood shake shingles Nowe there's one left on my block. Metal roofs are popping up in my neighborhood. Certainly not the curvy stuff you can buy at Home Depot.
The new metal roofs are really pricey


Let's pull back to the electric company.
Now they are adding coated aluminum wires. Not like my problems are anything but...
Edison company contractor replaced copper to new aluminum connectors.
Yes before the contractors F ed all inline they also didn't even use dielectric grease. Wonder what the service life of the bare connections are?

Let's not talk about California attempted banning of natural gas appliances . ULFT and plumbing. Or housing crisis. Yes there's certainly a crisis at the beach.

It's not just SCE , DWP. PGE, or the others. SCE was out to my house 2x with a partial shut down. Imagine using an aluminum connector hooked to a copper line. Of course it was the outside contractor said the repair man.

This has been a rough week for all even those watch from adjoining areas. For me Cal Fire showed my family Tri plex burned in 2008. Brother was left to battle with garden hoses and clients and neighbors lost everything. It was gut wrenching just not knowing and being lock out of the area.

There's fire boats in Marina del Rey that could have pumped water across PCH as well as the big LA harbor ones. Gotta figure they do 15 knots and been there from LA/LB harbor in a couple hours.

This post has been over several days of it seems a little scattered well it's kinda past my usual drifting ability.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

Warren ... Your much more coherent then the Bozo's running these cities and the state of California as a whole. ... look what happened in the Carolina's ... folks are still hurting!

... David

 

[puff4]

You guys aren’t alone on the lousy wire maintenance issues. We’ve had trouble for years here in Philly, but since we’re not as chronically dry and windy as CA, we haven’t yet had any major fires, thankfully.

Example: This was just prior to this past Christmas Day, directly in front of my house… we’ve recently been in a drought, but fortunately a light snow that afternoon prevented any fire. The photo shows the burn afterwards. I found it fascinating that it burned holes into the ground every foot or so.

 

[puff4]

We are in the general chit-chat area, and I agree that even there, it should be somewhat relevant to our cars. That being said, let’s not forget that our LBC-loving brothers and sisters also lost their beloved rides, and so much more, and to keep them in our hearts.

 

[Warren]

I just got a invite from another Brit car forum. It included and asked for content to areas like " The pub, and Humor." My .02 cents is a Facebook alternative is needed . I understand more than most the ability of other platforms to move and corral topics and content.

Imagine yourself on a team of guys on a racing sailboat a small confined space. Most boats have a rule no religion politics or other controversial subjects. But there's those who can accept other's differences of opinions rather than shut em down. But if there a Captain involved it's his ship.

A club of individuals is just that. I haven't had a burnt car but a couple of days ago a member here told me he was offer accepted on a Harrington that got burnt. I have 3 homes under red flag warnings . I have a fake name Facebook account .... No not a Catfish one . I don't get bent if I see something I don't like I click it away .

Pardon the edits hot dog fingers at work.

 

[Aladin Sane]

I imagine with the prevalence of car culture in SoCal, a large number of beautiful cars have met a similar fate.

 

[belmateo]

I hope you are wrong about that and the cars were stored in warehouses away from the fire area.

 

[alpine_64]

I imagine with the prevalence of car culture in SoCal, a large number of beautiful cars have met a similar fate.

Yes... already some nice private collections have been lost... And there is no rebuilds from that kind of fire.