Commentary: If a megaphoned voice tells you to evacuate, go — and other lessons from California's season of fire and flood

We moved to Ventura a few years ago to escape the L.A. heat. Shortly before midnight Dec. 4, we were among thousands evacuated from our homes. A few hours later much of our neighborhood, including our house, was burned to the ground.

Now our hearts break for our neighbors up the road in Montecito, whose friends and family members have died, whose homes have been destroyed, whose town has been ravaged by the fires' sequel: debris flows and mudslides.

We're lucky to have survived in December, and we're lucky to have a second, smaller place that's been safe from fire and floods. But we're not