Wildfires

Wildfires – UK

A number of major wildfires have sprung up across Cornwall and Devon over the past week, culminating with a massive blaze on Dartmoor. It is understood that the bitingly cold winds which have lashed the UK in the past few days have served to dry out the vegetation, making it more flammable. These same winds, despite their chill, have then fanned the flames of these fires, helping them spread and making them even more difficult to put out. The remote locations of the fires also made them even more challenging to extinguish.

In Scotland, A wildfire has broken out in the Highlands on a busy day for firefighters on the mainland and islands. Two fire engines from Dingwall and one from Applecross were scrambled to the scene of a wildfire in the Loch Carron area of Ross-shire. It follows another Wester Ross wildfire last night between Aultbea and Laide, near to Laide Wood. Elsewhere, another blaze cut off road access to the north of Skye on Friday afternoon after a wildfire broke out close to the A87 between Luib and Moll.

Wildfires – California

California’s annual rainy season is getting underway about 27 days later now than it did in the 1960s, according to new research. Instead of starting in November, the onset of the rains is now delayed until December, and the rain, when it comes, is being concentrated during January and February. Less rain is falling in the so-called shoulder seasons of autumn and spring, and more is falling during the core winter months. The worst fires occur in the fall, rather than in the hottest summer months, because that’s when vegetation is at its maximum dryness.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/3rQ1nCK