News: 0175853849

  ARM Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life (Terry Pratchett, Jingo)

NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab Closed Due to Raging LA Fires (space.com)

(Thursday January 09, 2025 @05:00AM (BeauHD) from the scary-times dept.)


NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), located at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains just north of Los Angeles, has been [1]temporarily shuttered due to the nearby Eaton fire . "JPL is closed except for emergency personnel. No fire damage so far (some wind damage) but it is very close to the lab. Hundreds of JPLers have been evacuated from their homes & many have lost homes. Special thx to our emergency crews. Pls keep us in your thoughts & stay safe," JPL Director Laurie Leshin [2]announced via X today (Jan. 8). Space.com reports:

> JPL is federally funded but managed by the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. The center runs many of NASA's high-profile robotic missions, such as the Perseverance and Curiosity Mars rovers and the $5 billion Europa Clipper, which recently launched to explore an intriguing ocean moon of Jupiter.

>

> The Eaton fire sparked up on Tuesday evening (Jan. 7) near Altadena, which is just north of Pasadena. It has burned at least 1,000 acres (400 hectares) to date, according to [3]CBS News , which cited the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire). The Eaton fire is one of several big blazes churning through the Los Angeles area, driven and spread by record-setting winds. The biggest and most destructive is the Palisades Fire, which is laying waste to the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on the west side of the city.



[1] https://www.space.com/space-exploration/nasas-jet-propulsion-lab-closed-due-to-raging-la-fires

[2] https://x.com/LaurieofMars/status/1877033688539468061

[3] https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/california-windstorm-fuels-pacific-palisades-wildfire-as-residents-flee-live-updates/



Re: (Score:1, Troll)

by buck-yar ( 164658 )

Sorry, we sent it to Ukraine to protect Biden's Burisma investments and the Soros empire

> INGLEWOOD, Calif. (KABC) -- Los Angeles County fire crews are sending some of their extra equipment to firefighters in Ukraine.

> The plane carrying that much-needed surplus equipment, such as hoses, nozzles, turnouts, helmets, body armor and other personal protective gear, is expected to take off Friday.

> This first responder-to-first responder help for Ukraine is a national effort as agencies across the U.S. gather equipment and supplies to send abroad. In Southern California, the L.A. County Fire Department led the effort after an organization called "First-in Fire Foundation" reached out on Tuesday.

> As the war in Ukraine drags on, first responders in the besieged country are faced with shortages in supplies to help provide basic emergency services and fire protection to its communities.

> The fire department worked with L.A. County, L.A. City Fire, and the National Guard to collect surplus equipment sitting in storage.

> While the L.A. County Fire Department has sent donations for tsunamis, hurricanes and other disasters, Chief Daryl Osby believes this is the first time the department has sent donations to a country in times of war. [1]https://abc7.com/los-angeles-c... [abc7.com]

[1] https://abc7.com/los-angeles-county-firefighters-sending-supplies-to-ukraine-first-responders/11661534/

Re: (Score:2)

by fluffernutter ( 1411889 )

Don't worry, the Ukraine will have no choice but to concede defeat soon.

Re: (Score:3)

by ls671 ( 1122017 )

TFS says some of them don't have a home anymore.

Re: (Score:2)

by DrMrLordX ( 559371 )

They might not even have insurance.

Prevention (Score:2)

by cowdung ( 702933 )

These fires are just insane.

Are there no barriers that can be built to stop their rapid propagation?

Firewalls?

Trenches?

Artificial rivers?

Now that so much has been destroyed can it be rebuilt so that this doesn't happen again?

Re:Prevention (Score:5, Insightful)

by beelsebob ( 529313 )

No. The problem with these very large fires is the wind. Embers from them blow downwind by miles, and spread the fire sometimes as fast as 15mph. Tiny little trenches (even ones hundreds of meters wide) don't stop them. They can jump across them easily.

Re: (Score:2)

by sg_oneill ( 159032 )

Not a lot. Once a fire is big enough theres sweet FA except a very good fire department that can slow it down.

The good news is that the three best fire departments in the world are the Aussies, Canadians and importantly here, the Californians. If it was in summer, you might even have a a few of those aussies (who are the masters of fighting highly explosive eucalypt fires which are similar in behavior to redwood fires), alas its not summer and the australians are back at home fighting big fires back in AU.

Happiness is good health and a bad memory.
-- Ingrid Bergman