News and opinion about wildland fire
CAL FIRE has updated the list of the 20 most damaging fires in the state, ranked by the number of structures burned. Two recent fires made the list, but the information for those could still change since damage assessments are not yet complete.
The Valley Fire came in at number 9 with 603 structures destroyed so far, and the Butte Fire is number 14, with 408.
Search teams using cadaver dogs found the remains of two more people in the Valley fire, which as burned over 73,000 acres 62 miles north of San Francisco. The Lake County Sheriff’s office announced that on September 16 the remains were discovered in the Hidden Valley and Anderson Springs areas.
Based on the locations, reports about missing persons, and evidence found, the Sheriff’s office has tentatively identified the remains, but has not yet obtained positive identification.
This brings the total number of people killed in the Valley Fire to three. Earlier, the body of 72-year-old Barbara McWilliams, a retired teacher, was found. She had multiple sclerosis and was apparently unable to escape her home as the fire approached. There was a report that a neighbor offered to help her evacuate, but she refused.
On September 16 Kevin Ragio, the Calaveras County Coroner, confirmed that two bodies were found in another fire in California, the Butte Fire, which has burned over 70,000 acres south of Jackson, California. Both of the people killed were in Mountain Ranch.
Related:
—Our main article about the Butte Fire
—Our main article about the Valley Fire
Kevin Ragio, the Calaveras County Coroner, has confirmed that two bodies have been found in the Butte Fire, which has burned 71,000 acres south of Jackson, California. Both were in Mountain Ranch.
One was found near Baker Riley Road. Mark McCloud, 65, had refused to evacuate and was overcome by the fire. He was found outside his home.
Another body was discovered in the remains of a home in the M 24 community. The release of the name is pending notification of next of kin.
At last count the destroyed structures in the Butte Fire included 233 residences and 175 outbuildings. Many areas in Calaveras and Amador Counties are still under evacuation notices, but others are being repopulated.
Resources assigned to the fire include 4,865 personnel, 519 fire engines, 92 hand crews, 10 helicopters, and 94 dozers.
Rain, and in some cases snow, has slowed many of the large fires that have been burning in the western United States. Compare the heat detected by a satellite in the map above (current) with the map below from August 24.
As you can see below, some areas in California, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Washington, and Wyoming received over a quarter of an inch in the last week, with a few locations getting more than half an inch. And in Orange County near Los Angeles that got almost two inches of rain on Tuesday, officials were dealing with flooding in Newport Beach and telling residents where they could obtain sandbags.
Of course precipitation is expected during this time of the year in the West except in southern California, and is the reason that fire seasons usually start to wind down in the northwest one-quarter of the US in September.
The image below shows the normal precipitation for the seven day period ending September 15, 2015.
From NOAA:
El Niño conditions have continued this summer and forecasts indicate that this El Niño will strengthen, with an 84% chance of it peaking as a strong event in late fall or early winter. In terms of how long the event may last, the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) says there is a 95% chance that these conditions will last through the winter, gradually weakening through spring 2016. Research has shown that strong El Niños are often followed by La Niñas, so conditions should continue to be monitored closely, especially if the El Niño weakens next spring, as predicted.
El Niño in Winter
An El Niño develops when sea surface temperatures are warmer than average in the equatorial Pacific for an extended period of time. This is important to North America because El Niño has an impact on our weather patterns, most predominantly in the winter.
Although each El Niño is different, there are some general patterns that are predictable. For instance, the polar jet stream is typically farther north than usual, while the Pacific jet stream remains across the southern United States (see figure above).
This pattern brings above-normal temperatures to much of the Midwest region, particularly across the northern states. This does not mean that cold weather will not happen this winter but typical extreme cold weather may be milder and less frequent. In addition, this pattern may bring drier conditions to eastern portions of the Midwest.
Rain on some of the wildfires in the west has reduced the smoke in those areas to a minimum, while the smoke produced a couple of days ago continues to slowly spread east.
The National Weather Service has issued Red Flag Warnings or Fire Weather Watches for areas in Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas.
The Red Flag map was current as of 11:30 a.m. MDT on Tuesday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts and maps. For the most current data visit this NWS site or this NWS site.
To see the most current smoke reports on Wildfire Today, visit the articles tagged “smoke” at https://wildfiretoday.com/tag/smoke/
