Burning opinions

Re “Fire shows little sign of slowing,” Sept. 1

I’ve been appreciating your in-depth fire coverage of late. I can think of no other tremendous source in these days. But am I the only one who thinks the $27-million cut from CalFire is one of the reasons the Station fire is out of control?

Hank Rosenfeld

Santa Monica

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I cannot believe that the Forest Service decided to do a “controlled burn” (now there is a misnomer) at Yosemite during a time when Southern California is burning.

There are too many inherent risks with such a burn.

Stephen Beck

Los Feliz

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I’ve been hearing about the tragedy that will occur if the fire reaches Mt. Wilson and destroys the various radio and TV towers and the observatory, and the efforts to save it all. With all that expensive and vital equipment up there, shouldn’t they consider removing more brush from around the facilities, creating -- as the Fire Department calls it -- greater defensible space?

Andy Pearlman

Marina del Rey

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Because it’s always “fire season” in California, and police and fire stations are on duty 24/7, I think the giant firefighting planes should be available 24/7.

Janet Salter

Beverly Hills

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I am baffled as to why we have not heard more from our president or vice president as the fires rage out of control.

If I remember right, President George W. Bush was roundly criticized for his failure to respond to Hurricane Katrina in a timely manner. This fire is our Katrina; the horror of hundreds of miles of fire so close to cities and wreaking havoc for wildlife surely merits some attention from the federal government.

I commend the governor’s response. But we also need to bring in added tools -- perhaps more water-dumping aircraft and, if necessary, more firefighters.

Those in positions of authority should be on top of this and do all they can to help our hardworking emergency personnel.

You don’t need to breathe much of this air to know this is a very serious situation.

Wanda Teays

Los Angeles