Source: NBC News
On September 9, the Butte wildfire began its destructive rage. Three days later, the Valley fire began. Both of these wildfires are in Northern California, and both have still yet to be contained. The damage has been estimated to be hundreds of millions of dollars so far. More than 1,000 homes have been burned to the ground, around 2,000 structures have been burned, around 3,000 people have been displaced, and more than 5 people have died (and counting). The Valley wildfire is estimated to be the third biggest wildfire in California's history.
This is a serious issue, as Obama has declared these fires an emergency, calling for federal funding to put an end to these wildfires and give relief to the people affected.
On another note, prisoners were given the chance to lighten their sentence and get paid by being firefighters for these wildfires. More than a third of the firefighters were prisoners that volunteered, and many of the inmate firefighters found that they enjoyed putting out fires and saving lives. This leads to the argument that prisoners are still people and deserve second chances for their crimes.
This is a two-part blog post, but here are the questions that I am posing. This year is the fourth year of the California drought, and evidently, dry conditions increase chances of wildfires. What do you think should be done to ensure the people's safety from these wildfires? Will this prompt California to really strengthen conservation efforts? What direction is California (and subsequently, the country) headed if the drought continues to worsen? Regarding the inmate firefighters, do you think it's a good idea for inmates to be given these life-saving opportunities?