Wind and heat are driving wildfires in the West

[Night Watchman]

Source: Associated Press

By The Associated Press
Jun. 29, 2016 5:33 PM EDT

Fast-moving wildfires fanned by strong, erratic winds and high temperatures are burning in California and Arizona. Here's a look at fires across the West:

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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA: At least 400 homes in Northern California have been evacuated due to a wildfire that charged through inaccessible terrain and climbed out of a steep canyon near Sacramento.
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: A massive blaze that killed two people and destroyed more than 250 buildings in rural mountain communities was more than halfway contained Wednesday.
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ARIZONA: Firefighters were mopping up Wednesday after a blaze in central Arizona came close to homes, forcing evacuations and the intermittent closure of a major interstate.
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MONTANA: Ravalli County authorities warned some residents to prepare for possible evacuations ahead of a wildfire burning in the Bitterroot National Forest.


Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/5beeefc66f4c48d0a1be4f8295b8b287/wind-and-heat-are-driving-wildfires-west

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I urge everybody reading this to click the link to the full AP story. Due to paragraph restrictions, I have only posted brief synopses of what's occurring in each of these four states. And if you think I'm harping on this issue, you are 100% correct! As a resident of San Diego, I feel a definite urgency about letting those of you in other states know about the crisis we're facing out here.

[FailureToCommunicate]

1. We were just in Northern California last week. It was dry dry dry and we heard several horns for the

rural volunteer fire departments call to fight blazes. As spectacular as the coastline is, it is also fragile to any lack of moisture, much of it is grazing lands of dry grass with steep canyons leading up to trophy homes on bluffs and promontories. The slow, winding switchback roads make land born fire response unrealistic.

The marvelous and historic vineyards -some of whom we were lucky to visit - are whispering about the changing climate and the effect on their very regional grape yields..."Someday Canada may be the major grape producer"

I'm guessing there are probably fewer climate change deniers in drought stricken California these days...

[Sunlei]

2. The fire in Kern county was really bad. It was spreading by 'fire clouds', spewing fire.

People weren't warned fast enough.