Many of the high end getaway places that went up were still laboring under the stupid Green "don't cut your undergrowth that is the habitat of some cute li'l field mouse, or we'll fine you into oblivion" laws, I'd bet anything.

As to the vineyards, they shoulda bit down and kicked on all their irrigation at top output and took a 'major' bottom line hit, instead of the 'total loss' they have to contend with now.

This was too perfect and too fast. Either some dumbass campers that didn't know to put spark arrestors over their fires, or these were set deliberately, and if the setters are found, they will, at best, be lynched. In a just world, burned.

SHTF getting out of Dodge should plan on getting out on secondary and county roads, not the billion dollar chokepoints that are interstates.

I've never understood why, when an evacuation is ordered, the incoming interstate lanes aren't throttled back to just a lane or two for supplies and police and the remaining used as outgoing lanes.