Washington, Jan 10 ().- The president of the United States, Joe Biden, has stated that his team is coordinating with that of the president-elect, Donald Trump, to deal with the fires in California, which have left at least ten dead and have reduced more than 10,000 structures, including homes, to ashes.
“They know everything we are doing to respond to the fires,” Biden told the press from the White House.
Despite the cordial tone, Biden has launched an indirect criticism of Trump, whom he has referred to as “someone from the other team”, by mocking his suggestion of clearing the forest floor to reduce fire risks. “Come on!” exclaimed the current president.
Biden believes that a more effective solution would be to bury the electrical transmission lines, which would be “much safer,” although he has acknowledged that it would entail an “enormous cost.”
Trump, who will assume the presidency on January 20, has assured in recent days that he could do a better job managing the crisis and, in addition, has spread false information and has blamed the fires on the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, one of the leading figures of the Democratic Party.
The death toll from the fires in Los Angeles increases to 24
Crisis management
Biden addressed the fire situation during a briefing in the Oval Office, in which Vice President Kamala Harris participated in person, while Newsom and the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, intervened virtually.
After the fires started on January 7, Biden ordered the deployment of air and ground equipment, including at least five tanker planes, ten helicopters and dozens of trucks, to assist the Californian authorities in the fight against the flames.
In addition, the president approved a declaration of serious disaster, which allows the federal government to allocate more resources to the states affected by the emergency.
Today, the Pentagon reported that more than 600 National Guard reservists are participating in the response to the fires in California, while hundreds of Marines and other service members are on alert to intervene if necessary.
Since the start of the fires, more than 14,688 hectares have burned, an area equivalent to the city of Miami and larger than that of cities like Boston or San Francisco.
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