He said, for example, that FEMA, the federal government’s lead disaster response agency, typically concentrated on public property, not private, unless individual counties declare the private properties a public health and safety risk. Dr. Karen Anderson has heard reports of people digging into the rubble of their burned homes in recent years without gloves , wearing only shorts and T - shirts , looking for sentimental items that might have survived California ’s horrific wildfires . And as the chief public health officer in Napa County , one of the hardest - hit places , she has used her office as a bully pulpit to get them to stop , immediately .
Dr. Karen Anderson has heard reports of people digging into the rubble of their burned homes in recent years without gloves , wearing only shorts and T - shirts , looking for sentimental items that might have survived California ’s horrific wildfires . And as the chief public health officer in Napa County , one of the hardest - hit places , she has used her office as a bully pulpit to get them to stop , immediately .