The dry, dusty rangelands of the Texas Panhandle couldn't be more perfect for burning. Temperatures were 25 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. The air was dry, with less than 20 percent humidity. And wind speeds reached up to 60 miles per hour. These hot, dry weather conditions worried meteorologists in the region, but their worst fears were realized on February 26 when a spark sparked a massive fire.
Five wildfires have broken out in the region in the past 10 days. Over 1.2 million acres. The largest of these, called the Smokehouse Creek Fire after the stream near its source, has spread over an area larger than Rhode Island. This is the largest and most destructive wildfire in state history. Entire communities had to be evacuated. Two people died. After more than a week of relentless efforts, crews were able to extinguish just 44 percent of the smokehouse fire.
Many things were destroyed in this fire 500 unitsAnd thousands of cows, horses and goats died in the fires or were euthanized. Given the dire situation, Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of emergency in 60 counties and requested additional resources from the federal government to fight the inferno.
“Texas is experiencing the largest wildfires in the state's history, and we stand ready to deploy every resource available to us,” Abbott said. said at a press conference earlier this week.. “The wildfires are not over yet, and until they are, it is imperative that Texans in at-risk areas remain aware of weather information to keep themselves and their property safe.”
It remains unclear exactly what caused the spark Texas A&M Forest Service officials continue to investigate.. Landowners suspect that downed power lines, an increasingly common cause of wildfires, were to blame. In California, 6 of the state's 20 largest fires That's how I started.
Firefighters in Texas battle large fires on a daily basis. On average, wildfires burn approximately 650,000 acres each year. In 2011, during a long and severe drought, Texas experienced one of the worst fire seasons in history, losing nearly 4 million acres of land. The Panhandle was especially hard hit. Nationwide, researchers discovered Wildfires are becoming increasingly frequent and intense, with seasons lasting virtually all year round.
The severity of wildfires varies by geography and vegetation, but weather plays a key role in their frequency and difficulty in suppressing them. These huge fires require hot and dry conditions, causing global warming. make such situations more common. The Texas highlands now have 32 more days with hotter, drier, and windier weather conditions than in the 1970s. According to the analysis By Climate Central, a nonprofit organization that tracks climate impacts.
„We're seeing more days with high temperatures, and we're seeing more days that are hot, dry, and windy all at once,“ said Caitlin Trudeau, a senior researcher at the institute. “It multiplies the threat.”
Climate change is also making it difficult to implement wildfire solutions. Prescribed burns are where fire personnel start a controlled fire and remove thick brush and brush. A controversial but effective tool This is to control the amount of vegetation that can cause fires. Weather is an important factor in deciding when to do it. If conditions are too hot, dry and windy, these relatively small fires can get out of control. A warming world is making it more difficult to maintain a cool, humid environment to prevent runaway fires. That's exactly what happened in New Mexico last year, when federal officials began prescribed burning in the Santa Fe National Forest, which got out of control. More than 341,000 acres burned. Authorities had underestimated the dry conditions.
Fighting wildfires is also becoming more difficult. Usually cooler nighttime temperatures allowed the crew to get some rest. However, as the earth warms, Nighttime temperatures are rising faster than the daytime temperature. Average summer night temperatures in 2022 were 2.5 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than in 1970, according to a 2022 Climate Central analysis. That means the fire could continue to grow even after sunset, giving firefighters a tough time overnight.
„Climate change is not only making fires worse and more dangerous, but it's also reducing our ability to deal with this problem,“ Trudeau said.