Explained: Why California Forest Fires Are So Serious This Time

Firefighters water a condo unit during the Woosley fire in Malibu, California, United States, November 9, 2018. (Reuters Photo / Gene Blevins)

California is suffering the consequences of the most devastating wildfire in its history. After a prolonged dry season, powerful winds swept the flames in the heavenly city of Northern California. Until Thursday, 56 bodies had been found and 130 people missing. The fire destroyed thousands of homes on 55,000 acres, including those of Hollywood celebrities Miley Cyrus and Gerard Butler, in addition to having partially damaged that of Guillermo del Toro. California has always been subject to forest fires every dry season. What made the forest fire particularly severe this time? According to President Donald Trump, it is the result of poor management of the forest. Scientists cited by various news publications have however linked to climate change.

The forest

Trump tweeted last week: "There is no reason for these massive, deadly and expensive forest fires in California, except that forest management is so bad. Billions of dollars are given every year, with so many lives lost, all because of poor forest management. Remedy now, or more payments from the Fed!

A Reuters report says the tweet has shone the spotlight on California's increasingly dry and overgrown forests, which it has described as actually large powder kegs. Reuters describes the findings of this year's Little Hoover Commission, an independent monitoring agency, whose report contained recommendations such as increased prescribed burning and the allocation of more money and jobs to the management of forests.

Reuters also quoted a report by the US Forest Service that federal and state restrictions had reduced the California timber harvest by more than 70 percent between the late 1980s and 2012.

The climate

Those who attribute forest fire to climate change argue that recent years have produced record temperatures, earlier springs and less reliable rainfall. Population growth is another factor. The New York Times describes a 2015 study by geoscientist Fengpeng Sun and colleagues that suggests California has two fire seasons. One, from June to September, is driven by the warmer and drier weather prevailing in western California. The other, from October to April, is caused by strong gusts called the Santa Ana winds in southern California; these spread three times faster and move closer to urban areas. Researchers believe that wetlands and woodlands are the most vulnerable to forest fires, as conditions in these areas become increasingly dry and warm, says the Union of Concerned Scientists of the United States in a Web article.

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