Being wildfire ready should be a way of life in Southern California

Kim Harris

Managing Editor

The governors of California and Nevada called for more federal firefighting assistance last week as they toured the region blackened by the lightning-sparked Tamarack Fire, one of several massive wildfires that have destroyed dozens of homes.

Battling multiple large-scale fires with limited resources, the U.S. Forest Service decided in early July to let dozens of lightning fires burn, including the Tamarack Fire. This is something that could have been avoided had firefighters not been stretched so thin due to the large numbers of fires which are spreading earlier in...