Fire intensity in Hawaii is consistent with climate change
- August 16, 2023
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forest fire who have lived in Hawaii over the past week and have claimed the lives of more than 100 people, have been aggravated due to various effects
forest fire who have lived in Hawaii over the past week and have claimed the lives of more than 100 people, have been aggravated due to various effects associated with climate change, and these fires have a direct impact on the increase in the temperature of the Earth.
He global temperature increase And droughts They helped set part of the island on fire during the worst natural disaster in its history, the conditions of which dramatically worsened the incident of strong winds in the region due to the presence of a cyclone.
Although it is wrong to say that changing of the climate is the main cause of certain forest fires, since this is a phenomenon caused by various factors in a natural or artificial way, started by a person, however, his intensity, duration And volumemay be strongly affected by the increase in the planet’s temperature.
At the moment, of the three main fires registered in the city of Mauione was 100% contained within days, while the other two are classified as 60% and 80% contained, indicating unprecedented damage on the island.
Richard Bissen, mayor of Lahaina, the former capital of the archipelago and one of the island’s most touristic areas, assured the day before that 80% of the city was completely destroyed flame fanned by Hurricane Dora.
According to him US Drought MonitorBetween 2018 and 2021, Hawaii experienced severe wildfires that destroyed hundreds of homes and evacuated thousands of people. However, their scale never reached what happened this month, when the damage is estimated between three thousand seven thousand 500 million dollars according to the agency Analytics Moody.
In addition, the death toll has already reached a hundred, which is completely unprecedented for this kind of natural disaster.
Comparing fire zone and the area currently engulfed in fires is estimated to be four times higher than in previous decadesand this expansion is largely due, according to the report, to the spread many more flammable and non-native plant and herb species on the islandmany of them are added for aesthetic reasons, promoting the development of tourism.
Besides, higher temperatures around the globe, prevent the natural decrease in temperature.
Moreover, they guarantee that climatic conditions and their rise in temperature are consistent with the spread and size of firesfollowing “trends that are known and predicted as part of climate change,” says Erica Fleishman, a scientist at Oregon State University for chain CNN.
Currently, Hawaii is experiencing an increase in drought, according to information from Royal Meteorological Societywhich consists of a decrease in precipitation equivalent to 90% compared to the last century, with 2008 being the driest period to date.
In addition, the fires coincided with the arrival of the wind caused by Hurricane Dora that although he was far from the island, they created new air cyclones that affected the area during the fire, increasing the life of fire and its spread.
“Traces of the storm moved north along with changing of the climate. Hawaii as a whole gets less rainfall, decade after decade, so long-term effects are driving this,” said Gavin Schmidt, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
climate crisis “It’s sort of a threat multiplier for wildfires.” and “there is a general trend that we will see more and more towards larger and more intense wildfires.”
(According to information from United States Environmental Protection Agency, Royal Meteorological Society, Guardian And Aristegui News)
Source: Aristegui Noticias
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