US West Struggles to Contain Massive Wildfires

US West Coast —(Map)

States in the western United States (US) are having one of the worst wildfire seasons in history. The blazes have burned massive amounts of forest, forced tens of thousands from their homes, and killed dozens.

California, Oregon, and Washington are struggling to control nearly 100 large fires and hundreds more smaller ones during one of the worst wildfire seasons ever. Other states including Colorado, Idaho, and Utah are also affected.

The fires have burned through more than 7,300 square miles (19,000 square kilometers) of land. The area burned in California so far this year is 17 times bigger than the amount lost during the same time period last year.

Thousands of homes and other buildings have been destroyed. Tens of thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes. In Oregon, 500,000 people have been told or encouraged to evacuate. That’s more than 10% of the people in the state.

Thousands of homes and other buildings have been destroyed. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes. Above, a woman gets a hug after learning that her house has burned down.

Around 29,000 firefighters are tackling the blazes. In California alone, there are over 16,000 firefighters at work. In Oregon, that number is about 3,000. In many cases, firefighters can only work to control the fires, not reduce them or put them out.

Fighting the fires became slightly easier on Saturday, as winds began to blow in from the ocean, bringing lower temperatures and wetter air.

Around 29,000 firefighters are tackling the blazes. In California alone, there are over 16,000 firefighters at work. In Oregon, that number is about 3,000. In many cases, firefighters can only work to control the fires, not reduce them or put them out.

The wildfires have created huge clouds of smoke which are blanketing the west coast. But the change in wind pattern is keeping the smoke from blowing out to sea, which makes pollution levels worse.

The intense buildup of smoke has made the air through much of the area dangerous to breathe.

In Salem, Oregon on Saturday, the Air Quality Index (AQI) was 512. The AQI normally only goes as high as 500. “Above 500 is literally off the charts,” said Laura Gleim, who works for the state government. In Paradise, California, the AQI was 592.

Leaders in the area are stressing what scientists have been saying for years: that the increase in the number and strength of the wildfires is closely linked to the climate crisis,  and is part of a cycle.

In Salem, Oregon on Saturday, the Air Quality Index (AQI) was 512. The AQI normally only goes as high as 500. Above, Portland, Oregon, which on Saturday had the worst pollution of any major city.

The Earth’s rising temperatures have led to drier conditions and many dead trees, which allow the wildfires to spread more easily. The fires produce massive amounts of pollution, while killing trees that are needed to help remove the pollution.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee said, “This is not an act of God. This has happened because we have changed the climate of the state of Washington in dramatic ways.” Mr. Inslee is calling this year’s fires “climate fires” instead of “wildfires”.

The wildfire season in the West is expected to continue for several months, so things are likely to keep getting worse for a while.

Experts say that with fires growing larger every year, in the future, it simply won’t be possible to fight them and win. For that reason, it’s important to take steps to plan for, and prevent, such massive, damaging fires – even if it takes effort and costs a lot of money.