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Example research essay topic: Los Angeles County Santa Ana - 1,327 words

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Human beings are able to adapt to almost any environment, unfortunately sometimes we take advantage of our natural surroundings. We find ourselves amidst a struggle between our lifestyles and nature. Although we affect nature profoundly with our activities, we in turn are shaped by nature's potent forces. Nature can be brutal to humans, but we must remember that it merely is following its course. As a result, we must learn to coexist with it. Fire is a naturally occurring phenomenon which humans have learned to deal with throughout history.

Yet when fire burns uncontrollably, there is great potential for monumental damage to all surrounding biomass. The Malibu wildfires are an example of one such instance. Historically, wildfires had been left to burn uncontrolled for weeks. Fires were caused by different sources such as lightning or human hunters who wanted to chase animals out of the woods. As prolonged as these fires were, they had limited catastrophic effects on the nomadic humans. This is due to the low population density and the fact that the fires were not very intense.

As people began to change from a hunting-gathering society to agriculturists, they settled in communities. Homes built among the wild brush were perfect prey to wildfires. Initially, wildfires were put out immediately and people were barred from setting fires in open spaces. Due to the policy of fire suppression, only one percent of all wildfires escaped early control.

The land was safe from fires temporarily, but this set the stage for catastrophe as the brush grew more dense. There have been more than 20 catastrophic wildfires in Los Angeles County since the beginning of organized fire protection. The first 'big one' happened in December of 1927. The fire started in the La Crescenta Valley, climbed over the Verdugo Mountain range and destroyed more than 100 homes. In addition to the damage caused in 1927, fires have profoundly affected the Southern California environment. Almost every square mile of chaparral land in Los Angeles county has been burned at least once, since 1919.

There are basically two large fire breeding grounds in Los Angeles county: the San Gabriel Mountain range and the Santa Monica Mountains. In 1993, the Kinneloa Fire in Altadena caused a great amount of damage to the surrounding area and destroyed 121 homes in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. It was the most devastating fire in the area, surpassing the previous worst fire in 1980 that burned 55 homes at the mouth of the San Gabriel Canyon. The total damage caused by wildfires in the San Gabriel Mountains within the past 60 years amounted to the loss of 332 homes. Statistically, Malibu and its surrounding area has seen much damage done to its vegetation and inhabitants. There have been 24 wildfires that burned a total of 271, 047 acres since 1927.

These fires have caused a total of five deaths and the destruction of 1, 502 homes along with 830 other structures. Recent fires include the Malibu fire in 1985, Dayton Fire in 1982 and Malibu Canyon fire in 1970. In the Malibu Fire, 103 homes were destroyed; in the Dayton Fire, 85 homes were destroyed. The Malibu Canyon Fire, which joined forces with the New Hall Fire on September 25, 1970, destroyed a total of 135 homes and burned through a total of 85, 000 acres (Wildfire sec. 2 p. 1). Out of all the homes burned, 70 were located in Malibu and 65 in Chatsworth (Wildfire sec. 2 p. 1). Previous to that fire, the last time Topanga Canyon had seen a damaging fire was December 30, 1956, when 74 homes were destroyed (Wildfire sec. 3 p. 1).

Another painful memory for Topanga Canyon occurred between 1938 and 1943, during which time three fires destroyed more than 600 structures. 1993 featured one of Malibu's most devastating firestorms. When traveling through Malibu's scenic landscape, it is almost impossible to imagine that this beautiful environment could foster such a deadly fire. Lovely ocean- view homes are nestled within the lush vegetation of the mountainous landscape. In fact, it was Malibu's beauty that originally lured people to settle there. Unfortunately, Malibu has the ultimate combination of climate condition, wind pattern, and lust biomass for wildfires. During the 1993 fires, biomass growing in the Malibu hills acted as fuel, as did the homes that stood nearby.

Some long time residents of Malibu have lost not one but two or even three homes. Like deciduous forests that have adequate moisture levels and cool climates, Malibu is very rich in vegetation. However, Malibu experiences a natural phenomenon unknown to deciduous forests: during the fall and early winter months, strong Santa Ana winds take regular trips through Malibu and out to the ocean. As the Santa Ana winds blow through, evaporating whatever moisture is left in the chaparral after the long dry summer, relative humidity can drop below 10 percent. Once a fire starts, it is nearly impossible to contain, until the Santa Ana winds die down. Malibu has a history of wildfires which 'historically follow well-defined wildfire corridors.

When large and damaging fires occur you " ll find the wind and fire corridors perfectly aligned. ' (report 4) This makes it even more difficult to fight a fire. The weather conditions on October 26, 1993, worried many government officials throughout the state of California. The temperature in Southern California was abnormally hot with very little humidity present in the atmosphere and the Santa Ana winds were starting to gain in intensity. A seven year drought had created massive amounts of dead undergrowth and the recent heavy winter rains had caused an abundance of light fuels to be produced. This was a perfect scenario for disaster.

On November 2, 1993, the Los Angeles County fire department was notified about a potential fast moving brush fire that had started at the top of the Old Topanga Canyon road, nestled within the Santa Monica Mountains. The fire was moving rapidly towards the Malibu coastline at a speed of approximately 1. 75 m. p. h. due to 30 - 50 mile per hour winds. The 40 + year old vegetation in the surrounding area was providing ample fuel for a conflagration.

In less than four hours from the start of the fire, the damage inflicted to the land was immense. Seven miles of the deep brushed Carbon Canyon had been incinerated by the unforgiving fiery beast. From Carbon Canyon, the fire spread onwards to the west side of Malibu by Pepperdine University. On the east end, the fire was moving quickly towards Topanga Canyon. 'By Ten P.

M. , the fire had burned just north of Malibu on the west and had burned through Carbon Canyon, Ramble Pacifico, Las Flores, Big Rock and into Tuna Canyon on the east (Firestorm 1993, p. 4 sec. 1). ' After burning fiercely throughout most of the afternoon, the intensity of the fire diminished significantly in the late evening hours of November 2 nd. By morning, the Santa Ana winds had picked up again and the conflagration was spreading further east and west. At three in the afternoon, the west ridge of the fire was close to containment but the east ridge threatened the Topanga Canyon community of Fernwood. With the help of eight water-dropping helicopters form LA County and two more from the Office of Emergency Services, firefighting companies kept the fire from entering this serene community. By 11 PM on the November 3 rd the Malibu fire was contained and the Los Angeles City Fire Department minimized its manpower.

Although there was no major fire activities within Malibu after November 3 rd, some fire companies remained on the scene and fortified the perimeters of the fire area until 6 PM on November 5 th, 1993. They did this to prevent any embers from igniting into another serious fire that would burn more of the deep undergrowth that showered the Malibu region. There were many complicate...


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Research essay sample on Los Angeles County Santa Ana

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