Ryan ChartrandThis letter is in response to the editorial concerning the brush fire near Cal Poly about two weeks ago. In the letter, the writer accused the school of not responsibly informing students of the brush fire near campus. Now I ask the same question to the public that I asked myself when I read the article: Why should they?
As much as the author wants to deny it, it was indeed a small brush fire. I’m writing this letter about an hour after receiving news that my family is safe in San Diego, and only my grandmother and step-sister had to be evacuated. In case you haven’t been reading the news, there are some “real” brush fires happening there. From the Rancho Bernardo area alone, 250,000 people have been evacuated with more evacuations happening throughout the county.
Given this, I think it’s fair to say that the school was right in not causing panic over a small brush fire, given its size, the lack of Santa Ana winds, and a large, immediate response to the fire. There is no sense in making the student community believe there is a crisis at hand and spreading fear throughout the school. Using common sense, I got all the information I needed that day.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. No one is telling me to leave, so I don’t need to. Therefore the fire must not be a danger. If you were concerned that the fire was a danger that day, why didn’t you just leave?
Brandon Clarke
Computer engineering senior