The Park fire, the largest wildfire currently burning in the United States, has torn through over 426,000 acres in Northern California in recent weeks and has destroyed hundreds of homes and other structures.
The fire ballooned in size in a matter of days, and it is the largest blaze in California so far this year. Thousands of firefighters and other personnel, some from as far as Utah and Texas, are battling the fire, which was 34 percent contained as of Wednesday.
The hot and dry weather has made it difficult for firefighters to suppress the blaze, which is spreading northeast within Lassen National Forest and “ascending slopes with critically dry fuel,” according to Cal Fire. But forecasters say the coming days could bring lower temperatures and higher humidity levels in the fire zone. Current unseasonably warm temperatures are expected to steadily fade and give way to highs in the 70s next week.
“It’s not a dramatic change, it’s slow. But each day is getting a little better,” said Eric Kurth, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Sacramento. “That’s certainly helpful.”
Here’s what to know about the fire.
When and how did the fire start?
The fire ignited on July 24 near Chico, a college town in Butte County, north of Sacramento. After igniting, the fire exploded to more than 120,000 acres by the next day and then nearly doubled in size the night after that. Officials said the cause of the fire was arson.
A vast majority of wildfires in the United States are caused by humans, but what started the Park fire was a bit unusual: A man pushed a burning car into a gully, and the car then tumbled about 60 feet down an embankment and lit the surrounding area on fire, according to the authorities.
The suspect was identified as Ronnie Stout, 42, of Chico, who was arrested on July 25. Mr. Stout, who already has two felony convictions for child molestation and robbery with great bodily injury, has been charged with felony arson and arson with aggravating factors. If convicted, he could be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
What do we know about the area where the fire is burning?
Butte County, home to about 210,000 people, has weathered some of the state’s largest and most destructive blazes.
In 2018, the Camp fire destroyed most of the town of Paradise and killed 85 people, making it the deadliest wildfire in state history. Then, there was the Dixie fire in Feather River Canyon in 2021, which burned nearly a million acres.
Despite the history of fires in Butte County, the land where the Park fire is burning has not experienced a blaze in many years, resulting in dense vegetation that is helping the fire spread. Across California, record heat this summer and two rainy winters have also produced large amounts of dry vegetation.
On Tuesday, under hot and dry weather, the fire began growing past its northeast edge, escaping firefighters who were trying to hold the fire line near Mill Creek, a small mountain community, said Jahaira Zaragoza, a spokeswoman for Cal Fire overseeing the Park fire. That led to new evacuation orders for some Tehama County residents.
The area where the fire is spreading is remote and hard for firefighters to reach. Plus, there are lava rocks — essentially very old lava formations — that are challenging to traverse, making it difficult for hand crews to create fire lines on, Ms. Zaragoza said.
“It’s extremely steep and very, very difficult to access these areas,” Ms. Zaragoza said. “It’s posing a hazard for our firefighters to go down into some of these areas.”
How does the Park fire stack up against previous blazes?
The Park fire has quickly risen in the ranks of the largest fires in California history — it is now the fourth largest and has spanned an area roughly 14 times the size of San Francisco. Currently covering more than 426,000 acres, it could pass the Mendocino Complex fire as the third largest, which burned over 459,000 acres in 2018.
Both are still dwarfed in size by the August Complex fire, the biggest ever in the state, which burned over a million acres in Northern California in 2020. That acreage made the August Complex fire a “gigafire,” the first in the state’s modern history. It originated as nearly 40 separate fires that were ignited by lightning strikes and then merged together.
Is climate change to blame?
Wildfires are a natural part of the ecosystem in the West, where forests have evolved to thrive with frequent fires. But climate change is disrupting that delicate balance.
Experts say that the heat and dryness associated with climate change are producing larger and more intense wildfires and that wildfire seasons are becoming longer.
In California, climate change is likely to have significantly increased wildfire activity, according to experts. But there are other factors that contribute to the state’s frequent blazes, including a history of wildfire suppression and construction of houses near forests. Of the 10 largest fires in California history, seven occurred in the 2020s.
Experts have warned that this season could be particularly perilous for the state. This year, wildfires have already burned about 791,000 acres in the state — far outpacing the roughly 112,000 acres burned at this time last year.
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