Over 5 million acres burned out west by August 2005. Why so many big fires, why so much scorched Earth so early in the fire season in the Western United States? On July 20, there were fires burning in 11 states. Most of these fires were caused by lightning and human carelessness and perhaps a few from Fire Bugs. Arsonists tend come out of the woodwork when the TV plays news clip after news clip about fires in so many regions. One of the most serious issues to this years fire season was the late rains and storms mimicking the El Nino Affect, which caused the shrubbery to grow. The desert was alive with color out West as the rains blossomed cactus plants and sagebrush alike, now with the super hot days reaching 117 degrees in Las Vegas, California Desert and Arizona, this brush has dried out. Lightning strikes in the deserts caused these bushes to go up in flames and once these fires started there was more than enough fuel to keep them going. There over 26,000 lightning fires per year and when it is this hot and that much fuel each of these small lightning strikes has the possibility of becoming a major fire with enough energy to generate its own wind. Water issues are becoming critical, as Arizona needs to save its water supplies, but must fight the fires, which threaten homes, structures, lives and our National Forests. Meanwhile as Las Vegas and Arizona have both seen temperatures of 117 degrees, it is also over taxing air-conditioning systems and over taxing the energy grids. It has been so hot that 18 people in Phoenix died during the heat wave in few days. Las Vegas was posting 107 heat in the middle of the night. A fire would not slow down with that type of weather. The people are praying for rain and while the summer Monsoons are coming soon, they also will bring more lightning and in areas that get no rain and dry storms, they are at extreme risk of multiple fires in those regions and there is little chance of putting them all out, as the fire fighters are over extended in 11 states. This appears to be one of the worst fire seasons in this decade and there is still lots of summer type weather ahead and then the hot East Santa Ana winds which affect regions in AZ, CA and NV. |
