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posted by takyon on Tuesday October 10 2017, @08:02PM   Printer-friendly
Live updates: 15 dead from fires in Wine Country, Northern California

The death toll from Northern California's wildfires now stands at 15, officials say, with a total of nine confirmed fatalities in Sonoma County. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office said on its Twitter page that the number of dead had increased from seven to nine. Three others are dead in Mendocino County, two more in Napa and one in Yuba, officials say. In Sonoma County, more than 200 people have been reported missing, and 45 of those have since been located, officials said.

The fires have burned 115,000 acres statewide and destroyed at least 2,000 homes and businesses, Cal Fire Ken Pimlott said Tuesday. More than 4,000 emergency workers have been deployed to help battle the fires, including a massive effort at McClellan Air Park, where a record 45 missions were flown Monday that dumped 266,000 acres of retardant on the blazes.

Vice President Mike Pence visited the state's emergency operations center at Mather Air Park Tuesday and announced that President Trump had approved the state's request for federal assistance in the counties of Butte, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Sonoma, and Yuba.

Also at CNN, The Washington Post, KQED, LA Times, and NPR.

2017 Statewide Fire Map.

 
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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Tuesday October 10 2017, @09:34PM (2 children)

    by frojack (1554) on Tuesday October 10 2017, @09:34PM (#580079) Journal

    If you want the outside to remain nice, choose the stucco option or add fire brick

    https://arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com/public/HSVW7BW6TY7IPKAVHCFJHVOZIE.jpg [amazonaws.com]

    We know how to build houses that won't burn.

    No we don't. Not in a firestorm.

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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 10 2017, @10:09PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 10 2017, @10:09PM (#580109)

    Your picture shows the result of stone over a wood frame with a wood roof. It seems to have had asphalt shingles; there is no evidence otherwise.

    I was suggesting to add stucco or fire brick to a www.monolithic.com house, which is a solid concrete dome. The extra layer would be just to protect a layer of foam insulation that is normally on the outside. If that foam were to burn off, you'd need to replace it.

    Solid concrete domes are quite good at withstanding firestorms. The only serious concerns are the windows and the air quality.

    • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday October 11 2017, @01:45PM

      by Phoenix666 (552) on Wednesday October 11 2017, @01:45PM (#580458) Journal

      As important as your house construction is, so is the buffer you create on your property between the treeline and your house. In the Rockies people who build homes out in the further reaches of a drainage take the trees down as far as they can and sometimes hire a bulldozer to set up a fire break at the edge. In the chaparral around San Diego people plant succulents instead of grass or flammable shrubs to stop wildfire. Nothing's foolproof but you can increase your chances.

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