California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday asked U.S. President George W. Bush to declare a major federal disaster for California due to wildfires.
In a letter to Bush, Schwarzenegger said the severity of damage caused by the wildfires underlined the necessity for such a major disaster declaration by the president.
The governor said that since May 22 this year, California has been reeling under 2,096 wildfires which have scorched more than 1.3 million acres (530,000 hectares) of land.
"In fact, as of the date of this letter, a total of 306 homes have been destroyed by the wildfires, and thousands more are threatened," Schwarzenegger said. "While many of these fires have been contained, there are 12 active fires that continue to burn and threaten the lives and safety of the people of California."
In June, Bush made an initial federal emergency declaration to help Californians cope with the effects of the wildfires at the request of Schwarzenegger.
But Schwarzenegger said in the letter that the president should amend his previous emergency declaration and declare a major federal disaster for California due to the wildfires' severity.
The response to these fires has severely taxed California's resources, and total disaster costs are in excess of 175.7 million dollars, the governor said.
The situation in California has been impacted further by the prolonged drought conditions and lower-than-normal precipitation spanning the past few years, he said, stressing that "the effects of the drought have been far-reaching."
"I have determined that this incident is of such severity and magnitude that effective response is beyond the capabilities of the state and affected local governments, and that supplementary federal assistance is necessary," said the governor.
Source:Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article