Lawrence O'Donnell on Los Angeles wildfires: 'This is the night my home might burn down.' - The Last Word - MSNBC

[wnylib]

16. Same here. I've never been in a hurricane, but

I've been through blizzards of 50 to 60 mph winds, and one bomb cyclone blizzard where winds reached 110 mph gusts while dumping several feet of snow.

Those blizzards were survivable if you stayed indoors, or, if caught on the road, you got to a shelter ASAP or had winter survival items and equipment in your car. A few roofs collapsed, usually businesses with fairly flat roofs, but people did not lose their entire homes and all that they owned.

I was also in a house fire in my teens, but we were safe once we got outdoors. How frightening and awful it must be to face fires all around you once you leave your home. Our house fire was contained quickly, with the damage confined to one room, plus smoke damage in other rooms. We lost some cherished things, but not the entire house and everything in it.

Besides the individual losses of everything that held memories for the residents, the communities are losing landmarks and all the history that they contained.