The Park Fire in northern California, propelled by extreme fire weather conditions, now stands as the state’s seventh-largest on record after burning for less than a week.
The big picture: Allegedly started by an arsonist in Butte County on July 24, the blaze has consumed up to 150,000 acres per day and forced the closure of Lassen Volcanic National Park.
- It has also caused thousands to evacuate and burned an unknown number of structures.
- The wildfire stood at 353,194 acres as of Sunday morning, but was poised to grow as it continues to encounter forests that have not burned for decades.
- These forests have been dried out by extreme heat so far this summer, with more heat on the way.
- While arson may have provided the spark that lit the blaze, climate change-related factors, including the heat and extreme dryness, plus land management policies have enabled its spread.
Zoom in: Based on radar data and observations from a network of fire-observing remote cameras, it does appear this blaze has spawned multiple fire whirls and fire tornadoes.
- Its smoke plume has also formed towering clouds resembling thunderstorms, known as pyrocumulus clouds. They indicate extreme wildfire behavior, which complicates firefighting efforts.
- Essentially, the Park Fire has been manufacturing its own weather, as have other large wildfires burning in Oregon, Washington and Alberta, the Northwest Territories and British Columbia.
- Much of the town of Jasper, Alberta, was damaged in a fast-moving blaze last week.
- The smoke from dozens of fires burning have caused unhealthy air quality from northern California to Nevada, Idaho, the Pacific Northwest and north into Canada.
State of play: The fire grew significantly on Saturday, and now threatens Lassen Volcanic National Park. The National Park Service has evacuated the area, and warns that structures there are at risk.
- “The fire has potential to reach both Manzanita Lake & Mineral HQ,” the park stated via X.
- Butte County authorities announced Thursday the arrest of a 42-year-old Chico man on suspicion of starting the Park Fire, California’s biggest blaze this year, which saw residents in some areas rescued by helicopter near the rural town of Cohasset early Thursday due to cut-off escape routes.
Context: Human-caused climate change has greatly increased the odds of heat waves and made them more intense and longer lasting.
- These trends are especially evident in the western U.S.
- Climate change has also increased the occurrence of days with extreme wildfire weather conditions, when blazes can spread quickly and behave erratically. That has been the case since the Park Fire started.
What’s next: While California may see a brief reprieve from the heat, which would aid in firefighting efforts, longer-range forecasts clearly show the hotter-than-average weather is likely to return by early August and persist into the middle of the month.