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Firestorm Catches News Crew
Congress Seeks Funds for Firefighting
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Exhausted Crews Fight Deadly CA Fires
Deadly S.D. Blazes Threaten to Merge
President Orders Aid For CA Fires
Arson-Caused Fires Anger Residents
Wildfires Cause Fear, Frustration
Fires Raze San Diego, Calif. Community
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Wildfire Toll Tops 1,500 Calif. Homes
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So. Calif. Fires Draw Local Concern
Devastation Looms Over San Diego Co.
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Calif. Firestorm Rages On
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Fires Kill 13, 900+ Homes Gutted
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Calif. Forestry and Fire Protection
Forest Service Fire Maps
UpdateLA.org
FEMA
Some businesses could take years to recover after flames destroyed offices and storefronts. Others lost hundreds of hours of productivity when workers were stuck on clogged highways or evacuated from their homes.
But there are firms that stand to profit as people rebuild and refurnish homes. Economists said insurance claims generated by the fires could exceed the $1.7 billion paid after the 1991 Oakland Hills fire.
``The real damage in the fire is the direct damage. That's large, but it's compensated,'' said Stephen Levy, director of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy, an independent research organization in Palo Alto. ``It's a human tragedy. It's not so much an economic tragedy.''
Levy said the economic toll from the fires pales in comparison to losses stemming from the ongoing strikes of grocery clerks and transit workers in Southern California.
``The 500,000 people who were late to work and delayed every day in Los Angeles County because of the transit strike has got to be more damaging,'' he said.
As skies began to clear of smoke from the week of fires, tourist attractions in some areas reopened.
At Legoland in Carlsbad, workers dusted the ash off plastic block models of the U.S. Capitol and the New York City skyline before the park opened. In San Diego, Sea World was preparing to reopen after being closed four days because of poor air quality.
But it could be a while before Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear recover.
``It's going to be very difficult, I would venture, for a couple of years,'' said Teri Ooms, president and chief executive of the Inland Empire Economic Partnership.
State officials said the fires could take a $2 billion toll on the California economy. That includes damage to homes covered by insurance.
Economists say they have not yet put a price tag on the disaster, which they point out caused no major damage to bridges, roadways and other infrastructure.
Some losses will come from problems like disrupted airline flights and temporary closures of roads and rail lines. But time lost when employees missed work will eventually be made up as people log overtime or even work some vacation days, economists say.
A major impact could be felt on the state budget, as legislators struggle with the massive cost of fighting the fires.
The federal government has agreed to reimburse California for up to 75 percent of the cost of battling the blazes. Usually, the state and local governments split the remaining cost on a 75/25 percent basis. But Wednesday, Gov. Gray Davis pledged to reimburse the full cost to local governments.
The rebuilding effort will benefit the construction industry and retail stores. But those effects will likely be short-lived. Economists compare the impact to the bump in the economy that came after the Northridge earthquake in 1994.
``That same thing will occur as a great deal of money pours into the counties affected, whether insurance money or government grants and government loans,'' said John Husing, an independent economist. ``This is a heck of a way to get the economy to go faster.''
One problem could be finding enough construction workers at a time when the industry is already strained to keep up with the blistering pace of home building in the state.
``You'll probably see a flow of skilled people from outside the state coming back here to go to work,'' Husing said.
