Speaking of DOOM, fires, disasters, et al., yesterday was the anniversary of the Oakland

[XemaSab]

Hills Fire, aka the Tunnel Fire.

I know someone who died in the fire.

Residents of the West, learn well the simple lessons of the Tunnel Fire: don't live anywhere where you don't have TWO evacuation routes, keep your brush cleared, don't put wood shingles on your house, and if there's a fire... don't worry about your stuff, just get out. :(

I actually visited the area of the fire two months ago for the first time. It was pretty rough, but it looks like a lot of the vegetation is coming back, which they weren't sure would happen. It's still a lot more bare than it was before. And it's been 16 years.

Living in Santa Barbara now it's scary some of the areas people live in. There are signs when you go up into the hills saying "Warning! Extreme fire danger!" when you go up into the hills, and people live behind those signs in the exact same types of houses and vegetation that people lived in during the Oakland fire... steep hills... windy single lane roads... thick brush... :(