Over the past week, three deadly forest fires have ravaged communities in California, and are still burning now despite firefighting attempts. The largest of the three, the Camp Fire has already burned 109,000 acres north of Sacramento, and has destroyed 6,700 buildings, mostly homes. The Woolsey fire in South California just north of Los Angeles has burned 83,275 acres, and the small Hill fire has destroyed 4,531. These damages will continue to grow however, as high winds are expected to reach California this Sunday, which would greatly increase the flames and cause the fire to spread much more rapidly. 25 people have died due to the three fires, and over 110 have gone missing within the fire zones. The Camp Fire is being reported as the third deadliest California fire of all time, and crews have been dispatched to search for survivors.
Analysis: Wildfires have always been a problem to humans as long as we have settled in forests; however to nature, wildfires are vital for forests to stay healthy and for the life cycle to be perpetuated. When the first large wave of settlers began to arrive in California in the 1850's, they cut down many trees, but unfortunately put out all the natural fires caused by lighting. This lack of natural fires caused the forests to become densely overgrown, and because of this, when fires do occur now, they are much more destructive than they would be naturally. For the forests to stay healthy, and to prevent the larger fires, many cities along the west coast have started controlled fires to clear out the overgrown forests, so that natural fires can occur without completely decimating the forest, and without spreading into communities nearby. In order for these deadly fires to be prevented, we have to start by undoing the long term damages started over a century ago, by returning the forests to their natural state to prevent further forest and property destruction, and loss of life.
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