It's not news that California with its pretty dry climate and vast expanse of wilderness is very a fire prone territory.
In ten years of living in Santa Barbara, I've been a witness to at least four major fires in the area. The latest, Thomas fire, was the most devastating. Fueled by gusty winds from the desert, it spread all over Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties swiping away hundreds of dwellings and leaving behind nothing but charred wreckage. It happen just a few months ago, in December, 2017. Over 400 hundred houses burned, thousands of people evacuated. And despite all the horror and fear, there was something surreal and fascinating. The sun in the veil of smog.
I've never seen anything like this in my life. Scary and alluring at the same time...