‘We’re trapped’: Californians now face the dual nightmare of wildfires and a pandemic

@ CNBC.com, Aug. 20, 2:16 pm

• California residents are now dealing with a pandemic and raging wildfires. 
• People with asthma say they are unable to leave their homes or socialize with friends because of Covid-19 and the air quality. 
• Bay Area restaurants and daycare centers are closing down because they can’t operate indoor or outdoor spaces. 

[....]

As blazes spread, Covid-19 in California prisons hits crucial inmate firefighting force

@ CNBC.com, Aug. 21, 1:03 pm

• As deadly fires spread through California, first responders lack a crucial part of their emergency response team: prison inmate firefighters. 
• The coronavirus has swept through correctional facilities and infected many vulnerable California inmates, leaving fewer available to help contain more than two dozen major fires and over 300 smaller ones. 
• The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has roughly half as many inmate fire crews than it originally had to work during the most dangerous part of wildfire season. 
• Inmates are often on the front line doing dangerous work and making low pay, between $2 and $5 per day and $1 extra per hour when fighting a fire

[....]

A redwood tree burning near the headquarters of Big Basin Redwoods State Park in Boulder Creek, Calif., on Thursday.Credit... Randy Vazquez/The Mercury News via Getty Images

from

It’s Hard to See Your Memories Burn’: Loss From Wildfires Grows in California

Some of the ancient, towering conifers in Big Basin Redwoods State Park are a casualty of the fires that have wracked the state.

@ NYTimes.com, Aug. 21

Kamala Harris' urgent tweet this afternoon:

Right before that I just happened to see that he's busy golfing:

parts of the Bay area now have a red flag warning!

no way to control or predict location of lightning!