The western US is suffering from a heatwave that has led to massive wildfires. This heatwave has brought record temperatures to several areas.
The people in those areas have been told to evacuate as the firefighters are battling with the raging fire in extreme conditions.
Furthermore, two firefighters had died in Arizona when their aircraft crashed while responding to this mission.
Las Vegas, on the other hand, witnessed its all-time temperature high of 47.2C (117F) on Saturday.
The firefighters currently on this mission said that the air in the wildfire region is so dry that the water dropped from the aircraft to subdue the flames evaporates, even before it reaches the ground.
Wildfires happened just two weeks after the dangerous heatwave hit North America. Hundreds of people died due to the spread of massive heat.
According to the EU’s Earth observation programme – it experienced its hottest June on record.
However, experts say that more such events are expected to occur due to climate change. It can be any extreme weather-related event, not only a heatwave.
But connecting any sole event to global warming is intricate.
As per a study by climate researchers the heat that seared western Canada and the US at June end was “virtually impossible” without climate change.
The firefighters who died in Arizona were given a tribute by the state’s Bureau of Land Management.
Also, people were evacuated from their homes in the north of Nevada, near the border with California. This move was necessary as the wildfires triggered by lightning strikes tore through parts of the Sierra Nevada Forest region.
Between Friday and Saturday, the fire doubled – sent up a giant cloud of smoke and ash which combined with the dry heat. Therefore, generating its own lightning – said by the Los Angeles Times.
“As long as it’s this hot and we have these low humidities, it’s kind of hard to tell when and where we’re going to catch this,” Lisa Cox, information officer for the so-called Beckwourth Complex fires, told the newspaper.
In Oregon, a wildfire waved by strong winds in the Fremont-Winema National Forest doubled in size to 120 sq miles (311 sq km) on Saturday.
This massive wildfires were a threat to the power cables that send electricity to California. So, the power operators in California have urged people to conserve electricity.
In Idaho, Governor Brad Little declared a wildfire emergency on Friday and mobilised the state’s National Guard to help fight fires also flashed by lightning.
British Columbia, Canada is also facing wildfire due to unusually hot, dry weather. An entire village was wiped out in a blaze earlier this month after it recorded Canada’s highest ever temperature of 49.6C (121.3F).
Hence, the country ordered a new set of railway safety rules for areas where there is a high risk of wildfire, on Sunday.
These rules include reducing train speeds when there is an extreme fire risk and removing combustible material near tracks.
