MSN_012419
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
malibusurfsidenews.com sound off<br />
Malibu surfside news | January 24, 2019 | 15<br />
Social snapshot<br />
Top Web Stories<br />
from MalibuSurfsideNews.com as of Monday, Jan. 21<br />
1. Updated: Evacuees given OK to return home<br />
Thursday afternoon<br />
2. Woman, hit by tumbling boulder, in critical<br />
condition<br />
3. Stars team up for California Strong softball game to<br />
benefit fire victims<br />
4. SMMUSD’s Malibu schools closed Tuesday, Jan. 15<br />
5. Two months post-fire, property assessment nearly<br />
complete<br />
Become a member: malibusurfsidenews.com<br />
Malibu resident Laird Hamilton (@LairdLife)<br />
posted Thursday, Jan. 17:<br />
“My new book LIFERIDER is coming out on 12th<br />
March. Pre-order now wherever books are sold!<br />
Aloha.”<br />
Like Malibu Surfside News: facebook.com/malibusurfsidenews<br />
From the Editor<br />
Time to talk about education<br />
Lauren Coughlin<br />
lauren@malibusurfsidenews.com<br />
Growing up, I was<br />
that nerd who had<br />
near-perfect attendance<br />
in school.<br />
It was largely for the<br />
academic side of the equation,<br />
especially once college<br />
applications became<br />
top of mind, but I also enjoyed<br />
the social aspect of<br />
my school community, and<br />
I know that much is true<br />
for many in Malibu, too.<br />
This past week, SM-<br />
MUSD students didn’t<br />
have a choice in regard<br />
to missing three out of<br />
four school days, and then<br />
school was back to being<br />
closed for Martin Luther<br />
King Jr. Day on Monday.<br />
This, as you all know,<br />
comes on the heels of several<br />
missed days because<br />
of the Woolsey Fire.<br />
Though it’s not likely<br />
that everyone shares my<br />
passion for near-perfect<br />
attendance, I doubt that I<br />
am alone in wondering just<br />
how much of a toll these<br />
interruptions might be<br />
taking on students, some<br />
of whom are preparing for<br />
college.<br />
At the same time, I don’t<br />
blame the district for erring<br />
on the side of caution, as<br />
the safety of students and<br />
staff members needs to<br />
come first. And, school<br />
or no school, the fire also<br />
surely took a toll on the<br />
emotional well-being of<br />
individuals of all ages who<br />
suffered personal losses<br />
and/or watched their own<br />
community members suffer<br />
after the fire.<br />
One glance at the upcoming<br />
sports schedules<br />
reminds that the winter<br />
season is nearly over when<br />
it seems that it hardly started.<br />
Rescheduled games<br />
and missed practices —<br />
plus new coaches looking<br />
to lead the way amid these<br />
odd circumstance — are<br />
making this season unlike<br />
any other, at no fault of<br />
those involved.<br />
And on the academics<br />
side, virtual outlets just<br />
may not be the same as<br />
one-on-one time in the<br />
classroom. Or, for some,<br />
they may not be an option<br />
at all as evacuations and<br />
weather conditions can<br />
leave one disconnected for<br />
days.<br />
So, what’s my point?<br />
I’m interested in hearing<br />
from students, athletes and<br />
parents who are navigating<br />
this unexpected turn<br />
of events. I’d like to hear<br />
from those who have successfully<br />
navigated these<br />
woes and who gotten into<br />
their dream college, and<br />
I’d like to hear from those<br />
who have changed their<br />
future plans because of the<br />
circumstances at hand.<br />
I’m always just an email<br />
(lauren@malibusurfside<br />
news.com) or phone call<br />
(310-457-2112, ext. 1)<br />
away.<br />
Letter to the Editor<br />
Pepperdine: A ‘friend of<br />
Malibu’s’<br />
I have heard and read<br />
so many inaccuracies concerning<br />
Pepperdine and<br />
the Woolsey Fire that I feel<br />
compelled to try to set the<br />
record straight.<br />
First, the decision to<br />
shelter-in-place.<br />
This was not a last-minute<br />
decision. It was made<br />
30 years ago in conjunction<br />
with the Los Angeles<br />
County Fire Department<br />
after the ’85 fire, and is<br />
reviewed regularly as part<br />
of Pepperdine’s ironclad<br />
Emergency Response Plan.<br />
Its benefits are obvious ...<br />
to keep the students safe<br />
in a protected environment<br />
rather than throw them out<br />
on the streets to further<br />
Caltrans District 7 (@CaltransDist7) posted<br />
Friday, Jan. 18:<br />
“One of the areas where #mud slid off the<br />
hillside along SR-23 in the #WoolseyFire burn<br />
area this week. U can see plant life is already<br />
regenerating. #SR23 #decker”<br />
Follow Malibu Surfside News: @malibusurfsidenews<br />
Malibu Surfside News<br />
Sound Off Policy<br />
Editorials and columns are the opinions of the author. Pieces from<br />
22nd Century Media are the thoughts of the company as a whole.<br />
Malibu Surfside News encourages readers to write letters to Sound Off.<br />
All letters must be signed, and names and hometowns will be published.<br />
We also ask that writers include their address and phone number<br />
for verification, not publication. Letters should be limited to 400<br />
words. Malibu Surfside News reserves the right to edit letters. Letters<br />
become property of Malibu Surfside News. Letters that are published<br />
do not reflect the thoughts and views of Malibu Surfside News. Letters<br />
can be mailed to: Malibu Surfside News, P.O. Box 6854<br />
Malibu, CA 90264. Fax letters to (310) 457-0936 or email<br />
news@malibusurfsidenews.com.<br />
overwhelm an already illconceived<br />
evacuation plan,<br />
thereby putting their lives<br />
in danger. Where would<br />
you prefer your child to be?<br />
Shelter-in-place is standard<br />
fire/disaster response protocol<br />
for certain situations.<br />
Second, the notion that<br />
local fire resources were<br />
disproportionately allocated<br />
to Pepperdine.<br />
Pepperdine has two fire<br />
vehicles and its own fire<br />
team experienced in wildfire<br />
defense, and all foliage<br />
is well cut back from property<br />
lines. Early on, County<br />
Fire Air Operations began<br />
using the campus and the<br />
water from its reservoirs to<br />
make airdrops throughout<br />
Malibu. It was only at approximately<br />
11:30 p.m. on<br />
Nov. 9 that two LA County<br />
strike teams arrived at Pepperdine<br />
to aid the campus<br />
firefighters in an immediate<br />
threat, [Pepperdine fire officials<br />
stated]. After several<br />
hours, they left once the<br />
threat was contained. This<br />
does not seem like an overallocation<br />
of resources.<br />
Miscellaneous notes.<br />
LACFD asked the Pepperdine<br />
fire truck and crew<br />
to address a fire on the<br />
Hughes property which<br />
they successfully did. I believe<br />
this was the morning<br />
of Nov. 10.<br />
Pepperdine has two water<br />
tanks on campus holding<br />
a combined 4.6 million<br />
gallons.<br />
These tanks feed local<br />
area fire hydrants and during<br />
the Woolsey Fire they<br />
were used consistently by<br />
the fire department.<br />
The County routinely<br />
uses Pepperdine’s water<br />
for air-drops, and uses the<br />
landing zone at Alumni<br />
Park for Medivac flights.<br />
Pepperdine is a great<br />
resource and friend of<br />
Malibu’s, not only in time<br />
of need, but culturally as<br />
well. We should be only too<br />
happy to have the University<br />
in our midst as part of<br />
the greater community of<br />
Malibu. When searching<br />
for scapegoats to blame for<br />
the disaster that was Woolsey,<br />
let’s not include Pepperdine.<br />
Graeme Clifford, Malibu<br />
resident