The largest and fastest-moving fires across California have left mass destruction and evacuated thousands of people from the area.
Since 2003, California has suffered from 9 worst and biggest fires. On Wednesday, California Governor Gavin Newsom said –
Lightning strikes and gusty winds have led to hundreds of fires across California,
We are deploying every resource available to keep communities safe as California battles fires across the state during these extreme conditions,
Of the 367 total fires in California, the state has around 23 complex fires, the term for multiple blazes in one region,
On Tuesday itself, Newsom has declared a statewide emergency in view of these fires. Already the three biggest blazes have destroyed more than 1,00,000 acres of land and thousands of people have been evacuated. Apart from these, damage to property is an additional loss to the people residing in those areas.
Regions affected in and around California fires
The giant cluster of blazes which began on Tuesday morning has spread across 85,000 acres covering 5 counties – Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus.
A cluster of six fires known as the LNU Lightning Complex Fire has encompassed more than 46,000 acres across Napa and Sonoma Counties.
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The fires in Santa Cruz Mountains and San Mateo counties have spread to at least 10,000 acres which forced 22,000 people to evacuate the region.
San Francisco’s Air Quality Management District issued “Spare the Air” alerts which restricts residents from burning wood also.
Climate change increases the frequency and severity of wildfires
The heatwave across the western US, which are suffering from recent erupted fires have experienced temperatures as high as 100° F, especially in Northern California.
Though the wildfires in California are routine every year, the recent survey shows that the intensity of fires has increased and the number of days these fires exist also have extended.
The area that was burnt by these wildfires has become double when compared to the 1970s. The average wildfire season has also prolonged by 78 days when compared to 50 years ago.