In article >,
sf > wrote:

> On Mon, 19 Apr 2010 22:48:50 -0500, Omelet >
> wrote:

> >Shallow root system? There are no typhoons in Los Angeles... <g>
>
> LA gets the Santa Ana winds, which are pretty bad alone. Fires are
> associated with them and eucalyptus fuels the fire.

It really doesn't matter. At least in the US, eucalyptus has the
reputation of falling over when it gets older, if you look at it cross
eyed. Some will drop huge branches even if you *don't* look at them.
They burn like torches once ignited, even without a wind.

I got over a million hits on Google for Oakland Berkeley Hills fi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_Firestorm_of_1991

"The fire ultimately killed 25 people and injured 150 others. The 1,520
acres (6.2 km<=\0) destroyed included 3,354 single-family dwellings and
437 apartment and condominium units. The economic loss has been
estimated at $1.5 billion."

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA