Wildfires in Southern California

I just wanted to make a very brief pre-emptive strike to the masses that will be clamoring in a few days on how much better the disaster response from the Bush Administration and the Federal government has been for California opposed to what happened in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast during Hurricane Katrina.

In California, the evacuees said they were pleased with the official response to their needs, the clean conditions, abundant food and water and even yoga, acupuncture and massage. Even animals were being accommodated, with evacuated horses put up at the county fairgrounds.

Just want to make a note that this response from the evacuees is prior to any federal assistance having even arrived on site. The response, which is far less than what is needed for response to the enormity of this disaster was all pre-planned and is being implemented through coordination among the State of California and the municpalities and agencies in the impacted area.

I like to Bush Bash with the rest of them, but this illustrates the importance of preparation activities and organized coordination at the State level to really make an impact for their own residents. By the time the feds come in the worse has generally already passed.

My thoughts and prayers go out to those impacted by this event, several of which are friends, family, and co-workers. I hope all states have put forth the same effort to coordinate disaster recovery in this manner.