Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights

August 20, 2020

Wildfires spreading through Native American lands in California




Photo courtesy Dee Dee Manzanares Ybarra, Rumsen. Dee Dee Manzanares Ybarra said late Wednesday, "Our Rumšen Ohlone ancestral territory is burning. Prayers please."


Photo courtesy Dee Dee Manzanares Ybarra, Rumsen


Photo courtesy Dee Dee Manzanares Ybarra, Rumsen



The Grindstone Indian Rancheria Community
north of Sacramento was evacuated on Wednesday.



In breaking news today, Thursday at dawn, The New York Times reports that wildfires raging in Northern California are doubling in size.

Wildfires tore through Northern California on Wednesday, spreading rapidly and engulfing dozens of homes as firefighters battled to stop the blazes, which have forced thousands of evacuations and were caused by an extraordinary number of lightning strikes in recent days.

A group of fires west of Sacramento, known as the L.N.U. Lightning Complex, doubled in size throughout the day, growing to 124,000 acres and threatening about 25,000 structures after forcing evacuations in Vacaville, Cal Fire officials said.

Four civilians have been injured and 175 structures have been destroyed or damaged by those fires, which are 0 percent contained as strong winds enter the area. Much of Napa, Sonoma and Solano Counties was blanketed in smoke during the day.

About 11,000 lightning strikes — a “historic lightning siege” — caused more than 367 new fires in recent days, Chief Jeremy Rahn, a Cal Fire spokesman, said at a news conference.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said that 23 fires were considered major blazes. At least one person has died, a helicopter pilot who crashed while attempting to drop water in Fresno County.

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1 comment:

J.D. Ruybal said...

Two months later and in the state of Colorado it is 2pm, east of Fort Collins and east of I-25; it is dark. Ashes on the ground, street lights on—the sun blocked by the cloud of smoke from northern Colorado fires. To-date 'Our' elected officials, as well as their ‘our’ governmental organizations (their counterparts) have yet to do anything meaningful to address the issues and preparing for the catastrophic changes in global events as they, the powers that be, are directly tied to corporate interests—where corporations have constitutional rights that supersede the rights of all life...Profit above all else.
The thing is, because the issue of smoke and fire, and its aftermath is not directly in the sight of the executives nor the masses; the powers that be will be allowed to continue as they are and folks will simply 'talk' about what is reported on their ‘individual’ source of information.
We were ALL forewarned yet the masses refuse the truth; distracted away from reality.
The reality for some cannot be ignored as the dark has engulfed the light of the sun.