This year’s dry summer and record-breaking heatwaves mean that hundreds of thousands of acres of American forestland are yet again at risk. After 2018’s famous Paradise, California wildfire, which captured the world’s attention, it looks like the region is once again experiencing large-scale death and destruction.
Right now, firefighters and rescue workers are operating across Northern California to contain the Park Fire, an enormous wildfire that the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has warned that, as of earlier this week, is 2,816% more active than the fires seen just last year.
In a social media post, Cal Fire described how wildfires in the region have already engulfed some 751,327 acres of land across California. That’s 29 times more burned acreage than last year. It’s also dramatically more than the five-year average of 140,996 acres.
Speaking to The Associated Press earlier in the week, a spokesperson from the Park Fire headquarters described how first responders are working quickly to tackle the fire head-on instead of focusing their attention on saving property and lives. It means that thousands of people across the state have been warned that their properties are at risk, and that they should consider evacuating the area as air tankers and helicopters work to put out the fires. The spokesperson, Jay Tracy, described the “explosive growth” of the
As of Wednesday afternoon, the Park Fire – just one of several California wildfires – had destroyed some 391,200 acres. Officials at that time said that they had contained 18% of the fire – just a fraction of the 611 square miles now at risk.
That’s a huge amount of land – it’s roughly half the size of the entire state of Rhode Islands and it’s more than ten times bigger than Los Angeles.
So, What Caused the Fire?
While this year’s record-breaking summer weather hasn’t helped the situation in California, the Park Fire is believed to have been caused by arson.
The fire began raging on July 24 and his since grown to become the fifth largest in the history of California. During a press conference on Monday, the Cal Fire Incident Commander Billy See said that more than 5,500 firefighters and other crews were working to contain the fire.
Last week, Ronnie Dean Stout II was charged with arson. He is believed to have started the fire in July, with court documents revealing that he allegedly pushed a burning car down a 60ft embankment. Stout proclaims his innocence, arguing that he did not push the car.
We’ll be keeping you updated as the fire either grows or, hopefully, becomes fully contained.
