O n May 11 2020, the crypto world experienced the phenomena knows as Bitcoin halving . For those who are still a little looney-toons regarding this phenomena, here's the lowdown . Moral of the story is that, as the Bitcoin supply decreased and it's 21 million market cap slowly approached, it was widely accepted that the low supply and high demand will increase the price of the cryptocurrency back to its previous highs. Basic business right? Wrong! Source: Equity Trust Company BTC prices actually fell and after briefly holding steady, are only just rising above the 10000 USD range. Surprise eh? Well, we are not done yet. Because while the most valuable crypto coin wasn't showing it's expected gains, some other cryptocurrencies shot to outer space. There was no SpaceX rocket nor a Tesla Roadster involved. These "altcoins" bumped up in their market value thanks to the entire underlying system of cryptocurrency: investor speculation. But what exactly are these ...
Remember the time when Facebook was caught, pants down, divulging and spreading user's personal data? There was a huge backslash but more importantly, when the company was questioned, there were more memes produced than concrete explanations. Nevertheless, it was an invasion of people's lives and data. Wildfires are the same. Only deadlier and they are probably not started by a fellow named Zuckerberg.
While Zuckerberg mishandled data, the recent Camp Fire in Northern California destroyed not just data but homes, offices, the occasional ice cream cart or playground among others. Most importantly the death toll has risen to a staggering 71 and that is not including 1,011 more people still unaccounted for. And let's not forget the Woolsey Fire in southern California. Yes, you read that right. There are 2 fires burning in the state of California. Talk about a double whammy. We do pray for their safety.
According to CBS News, the phenomenon in the North has destroyed the town of Paradise while the Southern blaze has scorched a patch of land the size of Denver. The blazes were contained at 45 and 69 % respectively. Luckily the containment region is bound to have risen as more people were allowed back to their homes, however this has led to confusion as parts of the returning populace were hampered when roadblocks were still in place.
And we know the traditional saying that smoke equals fire and fire equals smoke, so by induction areas scorched by the 2 fires have left blankets of smog which are giving China and India a run for their money in the 'Most Heavily Polluted Air In the World' challenge.
So what should Californians or another unfortunate residents do when caught in or close to this Burning Blaze
While Zuckerberg mishandled data, the recent Camp Fire in Northern California destroyed not just data but homes, offices, the occasional ice cream cart or playground among others. Most importantly the death toll has risen to a staggering 71 and that is not including 1,011 more people still unaccounted for. And let's not forget the Woolsey Fire in southern California. Yes, you read that right. There are 2 fires burning in the state of California. Talk about a double whammy. We do pray for their safety.
Photo from CBS News
According to CBS News, the phenomenon in the North has destroyed the town of Paradise while the Southern blaze has scorched a patch of land the size of Denver. The blazes were contained at 45 and 69 % respectively. Luckily the containment region is bound to have risen as more people were allowed back to their homes, however this has led to confusion as parts of the returning populace were hampered when roadblocks were still in place.
And we know the traditional saying that smoke equals fire and fire equals smoke, so by induction areas scorched by the 2 fires have left blankets of smog which are giving China and India a run for their money in the 'Most Heavily Polluted Air In the World' challenge.
So what should Californians or another unfortunate residents do when caught in or close to this Burning Blaze
- Evacuate when told to do so: Seriously just evacuate. I remember in Geography class where we learned about the overall causes and effects of Hurricane Katrina and one of the main causes of deaths were due to many people choosing to ignore evacuation orders. We are humans, we can't always outrun a wrath of nature and not all of us are blessed with Usain Bolt's or Mo Farah's running pedigree.
- Take only stuff you need: When you are running for your safety or life don't stop to take your Xbox or iMac Pro with you. It's a lot easier to earn money than earn a living. This isn't a game where you respawn. You die, you die. Take only what you need. Blankets. Clothes. Water. Some dried food. Passports (definitely...along with other important papers). Mobile Phones. Other important stuff which you need.
- Remain calm: I don't know how it is possible to remain calm when you are seeing an approaching artillery made solely out of the key element of human birth ( Fire, duh?), but just learn to breathe deeply and exhale. Panicking makes you do stupid things. Try to remain as calm as possible. Remove thoughts of death and failed Forza Motorsport challenges. Tell yourself: You got this baby!
- If you are caught in smoke, wear a mask if you have one, or a towel soaked with water over your nose and mouth. Smoke inhalation is one of the major causes of death in Wildfires.
- Call 911 or whatever your emergency number is ASAP: If they can hear you, they will try their best to respond. Don't expect response times to be in the low seconds though as they are probably receiving several calls
- If you can't reach emergency services, get to one: Fires are equally good at killing pets as they are at killing power lines and gas supplies and other signal amplifiers. Know where the nearest fire department and police station are. CHances
- Always have extra battery-operated radios and flashlights: Radio signals could make you know where the nearest safe house is or whether you should evacuate or not. Make sure to watch news on TV and not the latest Game Of Thrones episode, to receive the latest updates.
- Since you don't want your home to be the next literal fireplace, remember to remove all combustible items like firewood, fuel cans, etc. Close windows and doors. Fill bathtubs or buckets with water. I'm not sure this works but if you have a sprinkler system, leave it on. And make your insurance policies are well updated. If you have no way to escape stay inside the house wearing a mask if possible and in the water-filled bathtub or bucket. If you have extinguishers, keep it handy. But preferably, just escape if you can. Cause as much as water and carbon dioxide do their job, they are no match for the sheer power of an uncontrolled flame.
- If you are in a vehicle make sure the windows are closed and try to seal the air vents as much as possible. Most importantly drive calmly, unless the fire is about to engulf your car. At this point, you should probably try to recreate your best impression of Fast and Furious. However, it is preferable not to drive through heavy smoke as you may end up heading straight for anther fire or may end up running over a pedestrian. Park the car away from vegetation and lie face down covering your self with something. Btw lie down in the car and not the road.
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