The west is experiencing the worst wildfire year on record, by a long shot

[begreen]

This is a very unsettling trend. It's one thing to set a record, and another to obliterate it. And the wildfire season has another month to go in CA.
2020 just keep giving.

Record Wildfires on the West Coast Are Capping a Disastrous Decade (Published 2020)

One after another, major fires exploded across Washington, Oregon and California earlier this month. They have added up to the worst fire season on record.

www.nytimes.com

 

[CaptSpiff]

This is a very unsettling trend. It's one thing to set a record, and another to obliterate it.

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I've never heard of "# of cumulative detections" as a measurement. Is there a similar chart for acreage consumed?
I'd also like to see a chart on "primary residential living structures lost" compared to acreage consumed. I read that more homes are being built in the "fire prone" areas, but I also read that new building standards were having a positive effect.

 

[begreen]

I've never heard of "# of cumulative detections" as a measurement. Is there a similar chart for acreage consumed?
I'd also like to see a chart on "primary residential living structures lost" compared to acreage consumed. I read that more homes are being built in the "fire prone" areas, but I also read that new building standards were having a positive effect.

Yes, acres consumed is off the charts too, though I haven't seen a good graph yet with this year's stats. Probably because these fires are still quite active and not nearly contained yet in CA and parts of OR. In WA state we are winding down hopefully. Wildfires have burned over 713,000 acres, 181 homes have been lost here.

High winds this year has been driving fires into residential areas where there are few trees and brush. That is what wiped Phoenix and Talent off the map in OR, and Maldin in WA state. These firestorms are new and very fast-moving. As of early Sept. wildfires had already ripped through a record 2.2 million acres of California this year, making this year’s blazes the most widespread on record. The fires have killed eight people and destroyed 3,300 structures. It's reported that OR is so far over 1 million acres burned.