The connection between wildfires and SMART Cities

[Yvonne Smith]

it appears that the places where we have had the terrible wildfires that destroy all the buildings , are the same places where the city governments also wants to make the new 15-minute cities happen. This seems to be happening here in the United States, but that is where I mainly see the news, so it might also be happening in other places in the world.

The first one that really got everyone’s attention was the terrible Maui fires, which were a literal inferno, driving people to escape into the sea, and roads going away from the fires were closed off, making escape even worse.
Once the fires were out, the government started talking about rebuilding the area as one of the new 15-minute cities.

If you are not familiar with this, it is basicallly communities with shopping areas and everything a person would need with in 15 minutes of their home. This might seem like a good idea, but in actuality, it shuts communities down and locks people in, because there are gates on the communities, and you can’t go out the gate unless there is a very legitimate reason.

Last year, we had the fires along the California coastline, and literally all of the homes along the seashore were destroyed, even multi-million dollar mansions. Now, Newsom wants to replace it with apartments.
This month, we have a wildfire ripping through the coast of South Carolina, where we never see that kind of wildfire happening. Already, it is in the news that the city governments also wants to rebuild with a 15-minute city.

While there might not be any proof that this is what is happening, it is certainly a strange coincidence that right were these fires demolish everything is also where the government has been planning to build the 15-minute cities.

 

[RelaxedFit]

The biggest argument that occurs to me against that is the level of decadence and incompetence in LA government.

 

[Smithy]

We are lucky here in England, UK it's rare we get wildfires.

 

[Yvonne Smith]

We are lucky here in England, UK it's rare we get wildfires.

It is good that you do not have wildfires, @Smithy . We have them almost every summer here, but usually they are in forests and not so close to towns and cities as the ones have been that wiped whole areas of homes out, yet sometimes left vegetation unharmed.

More concerning to me, is the idea of making Smart Cities, and turning areas where people live into such controlled and monitored places. Wildfires are just one way to achieve that, and it can happen after almost any kind of natural disaster, like flooding or hurricane. Or just a rundown area that they decide to develop into a Smart City. Having a disaster there, just empties the area for reclaiming it as something different faster.

The acronym SMART refers to a “Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology”, but many people just use it as meaning the simple word smart because the devices called smart are able to do things that regular ones can’t do.
However, the SMART City, is definitely something that falls into the acronym of the word, just like smart phone does.

 

[Smithy]

Do your wildfires get under control or are they rapidly spreading when the disaster happens?

 

[Yvonne Smith]

Do your wildfires get under control or are they rapidly spreading when the disaster happens?

It depends on the wildfires. Most of them happen in the western UNited States and are started by lightning strikes from thunderstorms, and occasionally from some camper not putting their campfire out properly.
However, the ones that are happening by the cites are a totally different thing, and those seem to be mostly arson fires that spread very fast through homes in the area where the fires are at.
The ones in Hawaii killed people because there was no place to escape, and the roads were blocked so they could not drive out. Children were left in school, and the whole schools burned, and no one knows what became of the children that were inside the school. Tight afterwards, the government there announced they were taking over the burnt property, and would rebuild as they saw fit.

California seems to be plagued with fires in the southern part, and some of those were also set by arsonists. they found one who was working his way down the I-5 freeway and setting fires as he went, a few years ago. South Carolina does not have wildfires either, and this was right along the East Coast, so not where you would expect one, and was right where there are seaside towns, not out in some forest. I imagine it will turn out to be arson eventually, too.

No matter how the start, once they are going, they can jump from treetop to treetop and spread really fast, and change direction as the wind changes. They are really deadly sometimes.

 

[RelaxedFit]

We get them up here from time to time but on a small scale.

We do still have forested private, State, and Federal lands but our climate doesn't run so dry most of the time and the forests tend to be broken up by farmland and highway right-of-way clearings and remnants of native prairies.

 

[Yvonne Smith]

We now have another wildfire happening where we never have wildfires, and this one is in New York, on Long Island. The pictures and videos show huge brush fires there, and basically, this is not a forest, this is happening along Sunrise Highway, one of the main highways through Long Island.
Just like the Palisades Fires in Southern California, this is an area where there are a lot of expensive homes and rich people living in the area, especially in the Hamptons, which is where the Kennedy Compounds were (are?) at.

When I looked, it was easy to fine the information that the governor of New York State is spending millions to create SMART Cities in the state, and Long Island is one of the places where they have these homes planned. A simple and fast way to clear out the area is to just burn everything down, and it appears that is what happened here, just like in Hawaii, California, and then South Carolina.

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[Don Alaska]

Wildfires are my biggest fear among several here. After the warmest February on record and among the driest, I am dreading the approach of spring, although it seems to be coming quickly. I have several water pumps that I can use to pump water from the lake in my backyard. We'll see what happens next month.

The New York fire seems to be much different from the LA fires. The LA fires were mostly worsened due to "Green" forest management. I haven't heard that said of the fires in New York. Every place can have an occasional wildfire after a dry period.

 

[Yvonne Smith]

Wildfires are my biggest fear among several here. After the warmest February on record and among the driest, I am dreading the approach of spring, although it seems to be coming quickly. I have severla water pumps that I can use to pump water from the lake in my backyard. We'll see what happens next month.

My son who lives in Eastern Washington said their snowfall this year has not been as much as they should have had in the mountains ; which often means a drier summer. At least you are not somewhere that the government is going to want to burn you out and make it a Smart city there.
Even when I lived in Idaho, we had to be concerned about wildfires in the summer, but most of them were south of where I was living.
So glad you are here !

 

[Don Alaska]

My son who lives in Eastern Washington said their snowfall this year has not been as much as they should have had in the mountains ; which often means a drier summer. At least you are not somewhere that the government is going to want to burn you out and make it a Smart city there.
Even when I lived in Idaho, we had to be concerned about wildfires in the summer, but most of them were south of where I was living.
So glad you are here !

I haven't figured out the avatar thing yet.

 

[BethG]

Wildfires are my biggest fear among several here. After the warmest February on record and among the driest, I am dreading the approach of spring, although it seems to be coming quickly. I have several water pumps that I can use to pump water from the lake in my backyard. We'll see what happens next month.

The New York fire seems to be much different from the LA fires. The LA fires were mostly worsened due to "Green" forest management. I haven't heard that said of the fires in New York. Every place can have an occasional wildfire after a dry period.

Weeeeeelllll, look who it is!!! Howdy Don.

 

[Yvonne Smith]

Click on your name, the box that opens should have a place for an avatar. And all of the other preferences you want to set up.

 

[Don Alaska]

Weeeeeelllll, look who it is!!! Howdy Don.

Howdy Beth!

 

[Bobby Cole]

Wildfires are my biggest fear among several here. After the warmest February on record and among the driest, I am dreading the approach of spring, although it seems to be coming quickly. I have several water pumps that I can use to pump water from the lake in my backyard. We'll see what happens next month.

The New York fire seems to be much different from the LA fires. The LA fires were mostly worsened due to "Green" forest management. I haven't heard that said of the fires in New York. Every place can have an occasional wildfire after a dry period.

Hey Don ! Glad to see ya here !
I think I related this once before but when I was in Ekuk, there was a yellowish hue that sorta hung in the sky for a few days and one of the native boat captains said it was a peat fire.
From what he explained, they occur underground and can burn for quite some time until it goes out on its own. He said the problem is that if it can cause above ground fires that are hard to put out.

 

[Don Alaska]

Hey Don ! Glad to see ya here !
I think I related this once before but when I was in Ekuk, there was a yellowish hue that sorta hung in the sky for a few days and one of the native boat captains said it was a peat fire.
From what he explained, they occur underground and can burn for quite some time until it goes out on its own. He said the problem is that if it can cause above ground fires that are hard to put out.

Yeah, the peat fires can actually burn for years. They are suppressed by snow during the winter, but re-emerge when things dry off and warm up. I have some peat areas on my property, but they are confined and discontinuous, so they will burn themselves out quickly if started. I had a friend who was in the bush around Aniak (if you know where that is). She thought she was burning debris on the homestead she was tending. She put the fire out and thought all was well untill an area several hundred yards away burst into flames and got into the trees. She was by herself and trying to fight the fire by herself for several hours...until, to her relief, chutres opened overhead and smokejumpers dropped into her location and saved the day and probably her life as well.

 

[Rebel]

New Jersey, was in a literal drought, and we had wildfires galore this year. Most folks don't realize that we are one of the wealthiest states in this country, and people, suddenly began going ga-ga with Mc Mansions, gated communities with what I term, Cookie Cutter town houses and Condos. Only once did I live in one of those Dystopian Communities. Might as well live in Commie land.

Many trees, and we have them, have creosote in them, which is highly flammable. One spark, from lightning, a live wire, burning leaves, camp fires, etc., sets off a conflagration like you have never experienced. Just ask any Californian. Add to that, lack of rain, sleet, snow, and poof, here we go. Any state blessed with all manner of trees is subject to these fires, and sadly, we want our homes among them. It's natural. Even our famous shore area, where my son lives, are we to find them. It's not all sand and beaches along there.

Of course, I am not an expert in this field, but the 15-minute cities to me is a turn-off. There must be brainiacs out there who can figure how to clear an area, for individuality, yet keep the population and investments safe. It reminds me of being in the military, with everything contained on the base. We never had to leave for one thing when I was in the Air Force, stationed in Texas. Unless, of course, a tornado happened along and wiped us out. But, that's another story. Perhaps Smart Cities can be safer, yet different in many respects. Let us pray, there can be some relief from these fears soon.

 

[RelaxedFit]

Could this be some blueprint for a future with a severely aging population?