‘Explosive’ Wildfires Already Out Of Control Months Before Fire Season

"'Wildfire season' seems to be a thing of the past for drought-stricken California, with fires now raging throughout the year.

There have already been nearly 850 wildfires this year — 70 percent above the average, according to CAL FIRE data. High temperatures and low precipitation, both related to climate change, have dried out forests and scrublands across the western United States, allowing fires to spread faster and farther than usual, any time during the year.

'Since 2000 we’ve been seeing larger and more damaging fires,' Daniel Berlant, chief of public information for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), told NBC News. 'What we’re seeing now is that the rain is starting later and stopping much earlier. The fires are burning at explosive speed because the vegetation is so dry and that allows them to get much larger.'"
 
Samantha Page reports for Climate Progress April 26, 2015.