California wildfire threat intensifies as crews brace for hotter, drier months
Los Angeles, June 23 (IANS) Even before California’s traditional fire season reaches its peak, firefighters across the state have already responded to over 2,580 wildfires this year, as rising temperatures and increasingly dry vegetation heighten concerns over what officials now describe as a year-round fire threat.
Several wildfires remained active on Monday, including blazes in Riverside, Kern and San Diego, while fire officials warned that hotter and drier conditions are likely to bring above-average fire activity in the months ahead, Xinhua news agency reported.
The changing pattern has prompted California fire authorities to move away from the term “fire season,” arguing that wildfire risk is no longer confined to late summer and autumn.
“It does back up the need for us to utilize the term peak ‘fire year’ rather than the antiquated ‘fire season’ that we used to use,” said David Acuna, a battalion chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE).
According to CAL FIRE, 2,584 wildfires have burned over 79,690 acres statewide so far this year, destroying 25 structures. No fatalities have been confirmed.
Officials said a combination of prolonged drought, rising temperatures and increasingly dry vegetation has made the state more vulnerable to fast-moving fires. Heavy vegetation growth from previous wet periods has also become fuel as plants dry out under hotter conditions.
“We’re looking at all the predictive models and they’re saying it’s going to be an above-average peak fire season,” said Brent Pascua, another CAL FIRE battalion chief.
Scientists say climate change is altering the timing and intensity of California wildfires. A study led by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles found that human-caused climate change advanced the start of the state’s fire season by six to 46 days between 1992 and 2020.
The study identified fuel aridity — the dryness of typical fire fuels like grasses and trees — as the strongest influence on when the fire season begins.
“Climate change is fueling more extreme weather and the kind of dangerous conditions that can turn a single spark into a catastrophe,” California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a recent proclamation marking Wildfire Preparedness Week. He warned that there is “no off-season for wildfire.”
Newsom’s office said California has nearly doubled CAL FIRE’s budget since 2019, expanded firefighting personnel and built what it described as the “world’s largest aerial firefighting fleet.”
Fire officials are urging residents to prepare before conditions worsen. Recommendations include creating defensible space around homes, strengthening structures with fire-resistant materials, assembling emergency kits and signing up for local emergency alerts.
“Drier than average conditions across the state mean more fuel for potential wildfires,” CAL FIRE Director Joe Tyler said. “CAL FIRE and our emergency response partners across California are ready for wildfire — now it’s your turn.”
In California, wildfire season is increasingly becoming a year-round reality. As firefighters continue battling active blazes, officials say preparedness — for both emergency crews and residents — must begin well before the traditional peak fire months.
–IANS
int/rs