Investigating the Cause of Both Wild Fires - Essay Example

? Wildfires al Affiliation Wildfires Wildfires are a common occurrence in the United s. Hamilton d that every year, an average of 5 million acres of U.S. land burns due to wildfire. This makes the U.S. the most vulnerable country to wildfires. Wildfires are very dangerous to anything in their way, causing destruction to property, while others result in loss of lives. The Great Fire of 1910 remains the most destructive wildfire ever recorded in North American region (Garbe, 2013). The fire that began in Idaho and Montana spread very first due to strong wind resulting in the destruction of about 3 million acres of land. This wildfire also resulted in the death of 86 people. This wildfire was so devastating that it prompted the Congress to set aside funds to assist the National Forest Service prevent and fight wildfires. Despite the measures that have been put in place to prevent wildfires, the U.S. still, continue to suffer from the effects of wildfires. Causes of Wildfire Both human and nature are responsible for wildfires witnessed in the U.S. According to Hamilton (2010), about 90% of wildfires that burn the U.S. forests and lands are started by humans. Firstly, arson attack is responsible for most wildfires in the U.S. Arson attacks happen when an individual deliberately starts fire with the aim of destroying the land of a person perceived as an enemy. In 2010 alone, the U.S. fire department reportedly responded to about 260,000 wildfires intentionally started by arsonists (The National Fire Protection, 2013). These intentional fires resulted in at least 390 deaths, and left at least 1,340 people with serious injuries. The fires also resulted in the destruction of property worth $1.2 billion. In fact, the wildfire that burnt more than 147,000 acres of land in Southern California in 2009 was caused by arson, according to the U.S. Forest Service report (CNN, 2009). This wildfire also destroyed many homes in the northern part of Los Angeles. Most wildfires in the U.S. are also caused by people burning debris. Most people in the U.S. have the habit of burning debris. However, sometimes the wind ends up blowing the debris to a dry grass and forest cover resulting in massive wildfires as has been the case in Michigan. The Michigan Fire department reveals that most wildfires in the state are caused by people burning debris (Hamilton, 2010). Smoking is also blamed for the rising incidences of wildfires in the U.S., according to Hamilton (2010). It has been observed that some wildfires are started by discarded burning cigarettes. When an individual discards a burning cigarette on a dry grass or forest, this sometimes ends up triggering a massive wildfire that result in the destruction of several acres of land. A small percentage of wildfires in the U.S. are caused by sparks from moving trains, vehicle exhaust, and heavy equipment. Some of the wildfires that burn the U.S. forests are caused by nature, such as lightning and lava. Silverstein, Silvertein, and Nunn (2009) reveal that whereas 90% of wildfires are caused by humans, the remaining 10% are caused by nature. Normally, when lightning occurs, electric currents are sent to the earth’s surface resulting in wildfires. For instance, report indicates that about half of all wildfires in Florida are stated by lightning. Lightning is also responsible for about 2% of all wildfires in Michigan. Volcanic eruption is also responsible for a significant number of wildfires in the U.S. When an eruption occurs, hot magma is through onto the earth’s surface that cools down to form lava. However, when the hot lava encounters dry grass or leaves, this sometimes starts wildfires as noted by Silverstein, Silvertein, and Nunn (2009). The physical nature of wildfires The physical nature of wildfire is very complex and depends largely on fuel type, geographical location, humidity, moisture content, temperature of an area and topography. For a wildfire to occur, the necessary elements must be available. Firstly, an ignition source must be exposed to the combustible material such as grass and leaves that are subjected to enough heat and at the same time supplied with enough oxygen from the air (Linton, 2004). However, humid and high moisture content prevents ignition. It also slows down its spread since high temperature is needed to remove moisture and heat the combustible materials to fire. Wildfires usually start easily in less dense vegetation covers such as places with grass cover, and leaves. This is attributable to the fact that they are easy to ignite since they contain less moisture content that dense forest covers with large trucks and branches. In addition, wildfires start easily in places with dry grass and plant leaves The rate of spread of wildfire also depends largely on the flammability of the burning materials and their vertical arrangement. Linton (2004) argues that the fuel density depends on the topography of an area. For instance, fuel on the uphill dries more easily than the fuels downhill. In this regard, findings show that wildfire spread very fast on raised grounds due to the flammability of the materials uphill. Normally, materials on the hilltop are readily exposed to sunlight. This makes them dry up and release moisture contents making them highly combustible. This explains why wildfires are massive uphill than downhill. In fact, containing wildfires uphill more difficult than downhill due to the strong winds uphill that makes the wildfire to spread within a very short time. The behavior of wildfire is also influenced by the weather condition of a given area. These include drought, heat waves, and rainy weather conditions. Research shows wildfires are very common in years of high precipitation followed by warm weather conditions. Such has been witnessed in the Western U.S. where early snowmelt followed by warm weather condition has been linked to increased incidences of wildfires. The intensity of wildfire also increases during the day when it is hot. The CBS (2013) report indicates that the rate at which logs burn during the day is five times greater than during the night or humid condition. This is attributable to the increased temperatures and windy conditions recorded during the day. Sunlight normally warms the land during daytime, which causes air current to move uphill. The same air current normally travels downhill during the night when the land cools. These winds usually fun wildfires that follow the air current uphill and the valleys. For instance, most U.S. wildfires start during the day at around 1000hours due to the hot temperatures resulting from the daytime warmth. Comparison of the Waldo Canyon (2012) and the Black Forest (2013) fires in Colorado The Waldo Canyon wildfire of 2012 and the Black Forest (2013) fires are among the worst wildfires experienced in the State of Colorado in recent times. The two wildfires resulted in the destruction of a large forest cover. Pre-event conditions The Waldo Canyon fire of 2012 has been regarded as the worst ever recorded in Colorado history. The Waldo canyon fire began at around midday of July 23, 2012 at the Pike National forest, located about three miles west of the City of Colorado Springs. Fantz, Ford, and Vercammen (2013) observed that the condition for the day was very favorable for the wildfire. The fire broke out at a time when Colorado was experiencing dry winter condition with minimal precipitation. Report indicates that beginning 2011 to late 2012, Colorado was very dry and received only an average rainfall of about 13%. The summer that preceded the wildfire also saw temperature in Colorado rise to as high as 100oF. At the same time, most parts of the state had very little humidity. Colorado also experienced strong windy conditions at the time the fire broke out. Fantz, Ford, and Vercammen (2013) observed that containing the fire became very difficult due to strong winds that spread the fire very first resulting in weeks of fire fighting. The Black forest fires of 2013 are also regarded as one of the most destructive wildfires in the history of Colorado. The fire that began at around 1.00 pm of June 11, 2013 resulted in the destruction of several homes and property worth millions of dollars (Hanna, 2013). Like, the Waldo Canyon fires, the Black Forest fires were triggered by favorable condition that characterized the day. Eyewitnesses stated that they began seeing a black smoke billowing above the forest, just few minutes past 1.00 pm. On this day, Colorado was very dry and the sun just overhead resulting in excess heat. However, dry thunderstorms could also be heard at a distant. Duration of the fire until it was contained The Waldo Canyon was the most devastating wildfire ever witnessed in Colorado. The fire was so intense and spread very fast due to the windy condition. The fire that began at noon of June 23, 2012 was fully contained on 10 July of the following month. Mathematically, this implies that the fire took about 18 days to contain fully. The Black Forest fire, on the other hand, took fewer days than the Waldo Canyon fire. Ferner (2013) reports that the fire was fully contained by June 20, 2013. This implies that it took only 9 days as opposed to the Waldo Canyon fire that took 18 days to contain. Property losses The Waldo Canyon has been regarded as the worst wildfire in Australia’s history due to the amount of destruction caused. Report indicates that the fire burned approximately 18,247 acres of land. In addition, the fire destroyed at least 3472 homes making it the worst ever wildfire in the state. The Black Forest fire also caused massive destruction after nine days. Report indicates that the fire burned about 14,280 acres of land. This is smaller compared to the forest cover burnt by the Waldo Canyon fire of 2012. In addition, the Black Forest fire resulted in the destruction of about 486 homes, according to Ferner (2013). The damage caused was estimated at $120 million. Deaths and injuries The Waldo Canyon fire did to last without casualty. Confirmed report indicated that two people lost their lives due to the fire (Fantz, Ford, and Vercammen, 2013). The death toll in the Black Forest fire of 2013 was the same as that reported in the Waldo Canyon fire. This is after report indicated that two people died are a result of the fire. Post-Event needs Following the two devastating wild fires whose causes have since remained unknown, the Colorado Fire Service is initiating measures aimed at reducing the incidences of wildfires in the state. The state is still investigating the cause of both wild fires in order to come up with effective measures of preventing such fires. In addition, the state has also embarked formulating risk management strategies that will ensure effective and timely response to any wildfire in the state in the future, according to Whiteman (2013). References CBS (2013, Sept. 5). Hunter caused huge wildfire near Yosemite, U.S. Forest Service says. CBS News, p. 2. CNN. (2009, Sept. 4). Arson caused California blaze, officials say. CNN, p. 8. Fantz, A., Ford, D., & Vercammen, P. (2013, June 14). Two dead as firefighters battle Colorado blaze. CNN, P. 5. Ferner, M. (2013, Oct. 7). Black Forest Fire destroyed 486 homes, caused more than $85 million in damage. The Huffington Post, p. 2. Garbe, S. (2013). The worst wildfires of all time. New York, NY: Capstone. Hamilton, J. (2010). Wildfires. Princeton, NY: ABDO. Hanna, J. (2013, June 21). Colorado's devastating Black Forest Fire 100% contained. CNN, p. 3. Linton, J. V. (2004). Wildfires: Issues and consequences. Hoboken, NJ: Nova Publishers. Silverstein, A., Silvertein, V., & Nunn, L. S. (2009). Wildfires: The science behind raging infernos. New York, NY: Enslow Publishers, Inc. The National Fire Protection (2013). Arson and intentional fires. Retrieved from http://www.nfpa.org/safety-information/for-consumers/arson-and-juvenile-fire-setting/arson-and-intentional-fires. Whiteman, L. (2013). Big wildfires in the west: Why, how, what to do? Retrieved from http://www.livescience.com/38572-western-wildfires-causes-nsf-bts.html Read More