EBN- US President Joe Biden used the expression “Fire away,” which metaphorically means “start talking” or “go away,” during a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris and the White House administration regarding the California wildfires.
During a White House briefing on the wildfires still raging in Los Angeles, Biden, 82, shocked the audience with his choice of words for his vice president, saying, “Madam Vice President, (a California native), I know you’re the one most directly affected by this fire, so fire it away.” When Harris looked surprised at the president’s words, who was sitting next to her, the president added, “No pun intended.”.
Moments later, Biden repeated the same astonishing line to U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore: “Chief, why don’t you fire away?”
Wildfires burning out of control in the greater Los Angeles area have killed at least 10 people and forced nearly 180,000 from their homes. The total number of deaths is not yet known, authorities said.
Dry conditions and strong winds have sparked at least five fires, causing unprecedented scenes of devastation in areas not known for fires.
The Palisades Fire has burned more than 19,900 acres and destroyed an estimated 5,000 structures, and is 6% contained tonight.
A new fire, the Kenneth Fire, broke out this afternoon in the Woodland Hills area of Los Angeles near the Calabasas neighborhood, prompting more evacuations. Officials said the evacuation orders were later reduced and the fire’s progress was stopped.
An evacuation alert was also mistakenly sent to the phones of nearly 10 million Los Angeles area residents, a mistake that is likely to cause panic and fear for many far from the threatened area.
