As of this week, more than 80 fires are burning tens of thousands of acres across nine states in the Western U.S. and Canada. Fires in Oregon, Idaho, and Montana have been threatening structures and prompting evacuations since July, including from popular recreation areas like the Columbia River Gorge and Glacier National Park. British Columbia has declared its worst fire season on record. More than 100 fires are burning just in Washington, and last weekend, California saw one of the biggest fires in Los Angeles city history.
CURBED‘s Alissa Walker outlines why:
Let’s start with the obvious: It’s been hot. All-time temperature records have been broken up and down the West Coast over the last few weeks. San Francisco hit 106 last Friday (the old record was 103 degrees) and a slew of Bay Area cities also topped their previous highs. It’s not just heat, however, it’s the combination of heat and low humidity sticking around. The West has been gripped by a high-pressure system that’s prevented the current hot, dry weather pattern from moving along. Amazingly, this same high-pressure system locked Hurricane Harvey into a crawl over Houston … Read more
For coverage on how to build to resist wild fire, see”Living With Wildfire: Builders learn the lessons of life on the edge of the wilderness,” Sep/17)