Running Head: CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES INCREASE HOUSING CRISIS Nikita Adarkwah Article Analysis: California Wildfires and Housing Crisis West Coast University 1 Running Head: CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES INCREASE HOUSING CRISIS 2 Article Analysis The article “California Fires Only Add to Acute Housing Crisis” published in New York Times Journal explains the recent outbreak of the California wildfires and the aftermath of the economy. Over the last week, there have been an outbreak of wildfires in California that has spread all over different parts of California causing thousands to evacuate their homes. Over 81,000 people have already evacuated and the number is steadily growing. It has also left the air quality unbearable causing many to stay indoors preventing them to go to work or school. These fires have burned down homes, land, churches, schools, and have killed animals and people. “9,700 homes destroyed in Butte County alone, north of Sacramento, and 432 more in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. The death toll statewide rose to at least 66 on Thursday, including 63 in the Camp Fire. More than 600 people were missing in Butte County, a number that had jumped from about 130 on Wednesday.” (Dougherty, Fuller, & Johnson, 2018) The authors claim that the fires have worsened the housing crisis more than what it currently is. California is already suffering from a housing shortage and a huge homeless population. The authors use logical arguments by providing recent evidence to build and infer their new claim. This article is provided with statistics, facts, and information to back up its claim. The authors’ position is very reasonable due to the fact that a natural disaster will always do more harm than good to a population. In this case, thousands of people have lost their homes which have increased the housing shorting percentage. The authors’ claims are based on facts and logic and can’t be proven wrong. Running Head: CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES INCREASE HOUSING CRISIS Works Cited Fuller, T., Johnson, K., & Dougherty, C. (2018, November 15). As Fires Rage in California, a Housing Crisis Only Adds to the Woes. Retrieved November 16, 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/15/us/homeless-california-wildfires-evacuees.html 3
