The images of victims of the California fires this week are a stark contrast to those of Hurricane Katrina. "That was a 5,500 square foot house, and it's all the way down to the ground," lamented a man interviewed on NPR this morning. "They managed to save my Porsche," observed another in The New York Times.

Not everyone affected by the fires in Southern California was wealthy of course, and I don't care how much insurance and savings you have, nothing makes up for standing in front of the ruins of your most cherished possessions ("We didn't get the Christmas quilts I was going to give to my grandchildren," a woman told the Times).

The planning before the disaster was not perfect either.  Apparently, not every recommendation made by a blue-ribbon panel after the 2003 fires was put in place. Still, the Times reports, there was a fancy new software system that made for better information-sharing among relief workers and something called reverse-911 that dialed target neighborhoods to tell residents to evacuate. And, of course, most residents had getaway cars and cash for hotels during the evacuation.

For those who didn't, the American Red Cross sent in 2,000 shelter workers with "comfort kits," blankets, cots, and prepackaged meals as well as 75 mobile feeding vehicles. Organizations like Feed the Children and Nourish America quickly set up California relief funds as corporate donors Bank of America ($1 million) and Chevron ($500,000, 20 bottles of water, and 11,500 meals) jumped in. Doubtless, the quick response came in part as a result of lessons learned from Katrina. But, equally important, conditions were also in place to make a quick response possible.

 

The SoCal folks also have been quick, and able, to help themselves. Nick Samaniego, public information officer for the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Red Cross says on Redcross.org: “I've helped with a lot of operations before, but one thing that really stands out here is the positive atmosphere. At one point, we were stretched thin and the local residents were the first to jump in and help out.”

Man is no match for nature. No matter how elegant our homes or fast our cars, we cannot stay the winds or will away fires. But better-built homes, good transportation, more comprehensive insurance policies, and, most important of all, well-funded and accountable response teams can make all the difference between a disaster and a tragedy.