Shelton, Dinah --- "Using Law and Equity for the Poor and the Environment" [2012] ELECD 646; in Le Bouthillier, Yves; Cohen, Alfie Miriam; Gonzalez Marquez, Juan Jose; Mumma, Albert; Smith, Susan (eds), "Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Law" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2012)

Book Title: Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Law

Editor(s): Le Bouthillier, Yves; Cohen, Alfie Miriam; Gonzalez Marquez, Juan Jose; Mumma, Albert; Smith, Susan

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781781003282

Section: Chapter 2

Section Title: Using Law and Equity for the Poor and the Environment

Author(s): Shelton, Dinah

Number of pages: 41

Extract:

2. Using law and equity for the poor and
the environment
Dinah Shelton
In October 1991, the periodic shift of wind direction that Californians experi-
ence, usually in the autumn, arrived around the San Francisco Bay. The normal
off-shore coastal breeze disappeared and the so-called `Santa Ana' winds blew
in from the desert, coinciding with unusually hot and dry days. The winds
were much stronger than normal and they picked up embers from a construc-
tion site high in the East Bay hills, creating a conflagration known as the
`Oakland Firestorm'. The fire destroyed nearly 4000 homes and killed 28
people in the space of a day. Some of the displaced persons were given refuge
temporarily in the Claremont Resort Hotel, where each one was registered as
a `Distressed Person'. Most of the fire victims were insured and the insurance
companies had agents available within 24 hours, providing funds to meet
initial expenses. The insurance policies largely covered the costs of rebuilding
and refurnishing a destroyed home; they also covered the cost of renting a
comparable residence until the rebuilding project was completed. In the mean-
time, local, state and federal officials provided assistance to those burned out
of their homes. Shops gave discounts for the purchase of replacement goods.
Other communities reached out to help. The neighborhood rebuilt itself
completely within a couple of years and became a highly-desirable area in
which to live. Only the elderly did not return, because the stress of the fire ...