Honoring the first responders and supporting the victims of the Southern California wildfires.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my great colleague for yielding me some time and just follow my colleagues to again commend all of those who helped to take on this incredible challenge and to defeat this fire. Even though it destroyed lots of sagebrush land and lots of back country and homes and buildings and took some lives, we had a well-coordinated effort.

Let me just point out also that I know Mr. Issa talked about the United States Marines and the United States Navy especially in the San Diego region working hand in hand with State and local firefighting officials and volunteers and the crews and especially in the area of the air war against the fire undertaking this challenge and doing very, very well.

At the other level, at the level of bringing in assets from out of the State, I think we should also commend General Steven Blum, who is head of the National Guard for this country. And even before he received the request from the State of California, even though the request had been initiated by Governor Schwarzenegger, it goes through a number of bureaus and agencies before it actually gets to the unit that is going to send the particular firefighting aircraft to the location where it is going to engage the fire.

Before he received the request from the State of California, General Steven Blum deployed aircraft and put out the deployment order for aircraft from Colorado, Wyoming and North Carolina. These are the so- called MAFFS units, C-130 units that have the ability to put down about 3,000 gallons of fire retardant per aircraft. They can pave an area a quarter of a mile wide. They do an extremely effective job of fighting fires.

General Blum ordered those aircraft deployed to California before he had the order to deploy them. Before he had the request, he said, I am going to send them out as a training mission, and by the time they get there, the paperwork will catch up with them.

So I think we all owe him a debt, and all those wonderful crews that came in from Wyoming, North Carolina and Colorado, as well as all the other crews in various other dimensions of the firefighting who arrived from out of State.

So, Mr. Speaker, this was a wonderful team effort, I think perhaps a model for the country. We have a few rough edges to work on for the next one, a few reforms to make, and we are going to do that. But we had a wonderful, wonderful taking up of this enormous challenge. Our challenge now is to rebuild; and, similarly, we will all work together as a team to do that. I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, Kurt Vonnegut once said, ``I can think of no more stirring symbol of man's humanity to man than a fire engine,'' and I agree. Last week, my district in San Diego bore witness to extraordinary displays of humanity and resiliency as wildfires swept through our region.

We owe a debt of gratitude to the firefighters, National Guard and military personnel who fought and continue to fight the fires on the ground and in the air. Some of them lost their homes, others were seriously injured,

and all made enormous sacrifices to ensure public safety.

The firefighters with whom I spoke, it has been mentioned that they came from throughout the State and beyond, said Mother Nature outdid them on this one, but they do not feel defeated, and instead they were anxious to get back to work performing their job.

In addition, I think it bears repeating that San Diego County and City leadership should be commended for coordinating a quick and effective response. And I agree, San Diego region should be used as a model for the country. There is much that we have learned and much that we can also teach.

Last week, firefighters caused the largest evacuation in California's history. As residents fled the fires, volunteers from all walks of life came forward to help the evacuees. I saw such a tremendous outpouring of compassion and support at the evacuation centers. San Diegans rolled up their sleeves and found a way to help their neighbors during this crisis.

At Qualcomm Stadium, I spoke to a volunteer who is a professional tour guide. He realized he could put his organizational skills and strong voice to work at the relief center. The coordinators at the stadium agreed and assigned him to training volunteers.

I also saw staff from the City's Park and Rec Department organizing entertainment for children and families, volunteers passing out food, and even massage therapists helping evacuees to relax.

Although the majority of fires are now under control and many residents have left the evacuation centers, the San Diego region faces a lot of hard work in the months ahead. Our prayers go out to the many families who lost their homes.

As the shock and heartbreaks subside, we must do everything in our power to ensure that full recovery is within sight as soon as possible. And as we think ahead, Mr. Speaker, to the precarious nature that we are in and the inevitability of future massive fires, we must also engage in the most serious discussions of lessons learned.

I support House Resolution 778.

I thank my colleague from Missouri for yielding.

As a representative of areas affected by the recent wildfires and a cosponsor of H. Res. 778, I rise in its strong support. Over the last 10 days, wildfires have devastated much of Southern California. Hundreds of thousands of acres have been burned. Thousands of homes and businesses have been destroyed.

While this tragedy has faded from the Nation's headlines, thousands of our first responders, military personnel, volunteers continue to battle the fires and to aid in the recovery effort. Today we commend these amazing individuals. Thousands of firefighters from throughout California and across the Nation put their lives on the line to protect our communities. They battled out-of-control flames fanned by restless hurricane-force winds, and they fought tirelessly for 12, 24, even 36 hours straight.

In addition, countless police officers and military personnel and other first responders successfully executed the largest evacuation in California's history. Tens of thousands of evacuees were sheltered with ample food, supplies, and facilities. Thousands of generous individuals have given their time, their money, their resources to help victims of this tragedy to get back on their feet.

Mr. Speaker, California is sadly all too familiar with wildfires. My district includes parts of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, each of which experience wildfires almost annually. The most recent was Zaca fire which burned more than 240,000 acres of these three counties and lasted almost 3 months.

I am proud to say from firsthand experience that California's emergency preparedness systems and procedures are among the best in the Nation, I would say in the world. As the wildfires grew in size and numbers, the Governor's Office of Emergency Services was able to coordinate and allocate resources to the areas that needed them most, regardless of jurisdiction. Local firefighters from San Diego battled flames along with colleagues from Nevada, while planes from Wyoming and Colorado filled their tanks at Channel Islands Air National Guard Station just outside my district.

If it were not for this organized and swift effort, many more acres, homes, and lives would have been lost. Mr. Speaker, as we move forward, I hope we can learn from this experience to help prevent such a tragedy from repeating itself in the future. And to the countless men and women who helped in this tragedy, we commend you and we thank you for your heroic efforts.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge passage of this resolution honoring and recognizing the heroic efforts of the firefighters and other first responders to the fires in Southern California.

Mr. Speaker, I think we should take a moment to ponder what happens when a situation like this occurs. A disaster occurs and people appear, seemingly out of nowhere, to offer every type of help and assistance. They are organized and disciplined and effective and precise. They are heroic and swift and knowledgeable and kind.

But who are they? Who are these men and women who drive toward the disaster when the rest of us drive away? Who leaves behind his home and family for perhaps weeks on end and goes to help others? Who sets up the shelters and the medical aid stations? Who helps seniors and the infirm evacuate? Who rushes to save Los Angeles and Ventura and Orange and Riverside and Santa Barbara and San Bernardino and San Diego?

In the case of California, about 2,500 citizen soldiers, we call them National Guardsmen, have raced to the rescue. So have countless numbers of firefighters, law enforcement, and medical personnel.

We owe these people and their families a debt of gratitude. We couldn't do what they do. Thank God they can.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier).

(Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Imperial Beach, California, my friend, Mr. Bilbray.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), a member of the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to our colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), who represents some of the City of San Diego and much of San Diego County.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I will simply close for our side by saying these were fires and evacuations of historic proportions. They were handled in absolutely the best way possible, and I commend everyone involved in responding to these disasters and urge passage of this resolution. I think it is something that all of our colleagues can enthusiastically support.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, as Chair of the California Democratic delegation, I rise along with Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Waxman, and my Republican colleagues to honor the heroic services, actions, and sacrifices of our first responders, State and local officials, volunteers, and others who participated in responding to last week's devastating outbreak of wildfires in Southern California.

This was the worst outbreak of wildfires in California history. Over 500,000 acres burned, nearly 1 million residents evacuated, over 3,000 residential and commercial properties destroyed or damaged, 116 reported injuries, seven reported fatalities.

I have no doubt that the quick and valiant response of our firefighters, police officers, National Guard, and thousands of selfless volunteers saved lives and hundreds of millions of dollars. The State of California owes these brave men and women our gratitude. California and our Nation also owes a debt of gratitude to our neighbors, Canada and Mexico, for volunteering their own firefighters and equipment.

I would also like to commend the cities, counties, and State for showing great leadership and preparedness in dealing with this disaster. Leadership at the local and State government levels allowed for effective coordination with Federal agencies in the allocation of resources and making sure our residents were out of harm's way.

Because of the change in weather pattern, coupled with the extraordinary efforts of firefighters, we are now beginning to contain most of these fires and are closing the evacuation shelters. However, many families are going back to literally ruins of their former homes, lives, and communities.

I ask that all of my colleagues continue to stand with our California neighbors as they begin to rebuild their lives. The fires may be dying down, but the emotional impact and financial hardship faced by these families are only beginning.

With the leadership of Speaker Pelosi, Senators Feinstein and Boxer, and Chairman Dicks, we hope to quickly move an emergency appropriations bill to help the rebuilding process for the families, cities, and counties affected by this devastating wildfire.

This resolution today, cosponsored by every single member of our 53- member-strong bipartisan delegation is, I believe, the first legislative step forward for Congress to meet the needs of California as she recovers from this disaster.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I represent the southern part of the City of San Diego where we had thousands of evacuees, hundreds of homes lost, a really terrifying situation for many people. Of course, getting back on their feet will be a major, major challenge. But what we saw, as we have heard from my colleagues, is cooperation, cooperation from all levels of government, from the cities, the fire districts, county, State, Federal, and also international, which no one has mentioned up to this point. I watched as 60 firefighters, bomberos as we call them, from Tijuana, in Mexico, came to help and were a part of the team as we fought the Harris fire in southern San Diego. I think that was a very important contribution.

I had the opportunity to talk to the President as we flew to the fires. He understood that he needed to be visible very early, which was very hopeful, and that FEMA had to be proactive and not just reactive. The blue shirts of FEMA were on the job and visible everywhere, and their local assistance centers were set up very much earlier than in any previous disaster, I think. And that gave hope to many people. Those assistance centers, again, before even many of the evacuees had been allowed to return home were there and helping people.

We saw the hope on people's faces as they saw this cooperation in getting help from everywhere. And although they face a very difficult time, they do have hope. It was the volunteers, of course, our firefighters and our officers, police officers and other first responders, but the volunteers came from all over. Some of them had evacuated their own homes. Some of them lost their own homes. Teachers and others were there to help the children while away the time and even learn while they were there, people who brought food, people who brought clothing and psychological help, massages and medical help. So all of these people were involved. It was an incredible sight to behold as we went to Qualcomm Stadium or any of the evacuation centers around the county. You saw everybody pitching in. It was that coming together in San Diego that will give hope to the people who face challenges in the future and that got us through this very terrifying time.

I thank the House for this resolution in support of the people of California.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 778) honoring the first responders and supporting the victims of the Southern California wildfires.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, as a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am pleased to join my colleagues in consideration of House Resolution 778, a resolution that recognizes and honors the heroic service, actions, and sacrifices of first responders, National Guardsmen, volunteers, and others who participated in responding to the outbreak of wildfires in Southern California. House Resolution 778, which has 53 cosponsors, was

introduced by Representative Zoe Lofgren.

Mr. Speaker, wildfires in Southern California have destroyed over 1,000 homes and scorched more than 400,000 acres. From San Diego to Malibu, hundreds of thousands were warned to leave their homes. More than 250,000 were told to flee in San Diego County alone. There were at least 18 different wildfires in Southern California.

I commend my colleague, Representative Lofgren, for seeking to honor the first responders and to express full support to the victims of the Southern California wildfires and urge the swift passage of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from California.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to yield 3 minutes to my friend from California (Mr. Baca).

(Mr. BACA asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis).

Mr. Speaker, I now yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California, Madam Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps).

Mr. Speaker, I reserve my time.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to unanimously support this resolution and show full support to the victims of these wildfires, the people of Southern California. I urge swift passage.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, over the course of just one week, my home State of California has witnessed the most destructive and expansive wildfires in its history. Across southern California, more than a dozen large fires fueled by powerful Santa Ana winds burned over 500,000 acres. The flames engulfed forests, homes and businesses alike. In my congressional district, the city of Malibu lost homes, a community church, and Castle Kashan, an iconic landmark on the California coast.

As these fires raged, thousands of courageous firefighters risked their lives to battle the flames, tirelessly working shift after shift in grueling conditions. Hundreds of volunteers donated money, resources, and time to help the nearly 1 million Californians evacuated at the height of the crisis. Officials at all levels of government acted swiftly to coordinate a rapid response. While we grieve for the hundreds of families who have been devastated, we must be thankful that even greater losses were averted.

The damage caused by the fires is staggering in its scope and heartbreaking in its impact on those who must start over from scratch. But Californians are resilient and determined to restore their communities and rebuild their lives. Today we stand in solidarity as we consider H. Res. 778, a resolution honoring the first responders and supporting the victims of the southern California wildfires. This resolution sends an important message to all Californians that the Nation is with them, and that Congress stands prepared to provide the assistance they need.