California records ‘gigafire’ as blazes burn out of control

A firefighter monitors a controlled burn during the Glass Fire near Calistoga, California

Credit: Bloomberg

California’s unprecedented wildfires are now spanning such distances they have been classified as a “gigafire”. 

The August Complex, a group of fires burning in and around the Mendocino National Forest in northern California, has torched more than one million acres and counting, making it the state’s first "gigafire," a term coined by academics to describe the growing presence and scope of massive wildfires in the US West.

The 2020 wildfire season has shattered records, with scientists and state officials putting much of the blame on global warming.

"If that’s not proof-point testament to climate change, I don’t know what is," Gavin Newsom, California Governor, said.

In Napa Valley’s wine-growing region, diminishing gusts late on Sunday and early on Monday helped crews gain some ground over the Glass Fire.

Despite its colossal size, the August Complex fire has burned in remote, sparsely populated areas, keeping property losses relatively low — about 160 buildings destroyed — though a contract firefighter was killed by the blaze. It is still only 50 per cent under control.

By comparison, no serious injuries have been reported in the much smaller Glass Fire, but nearly 1,500 homes and other buildings have been reduced to ruins in Napa and neighboring Sonoma County, including at least two wineries.

The fire broke out in the midst of the region’s grape harvest after a spate of other large blazes during the summer, putting some of Napa-Sonoma’s 2020 vintage into question.

Since January, wildfires across California have burned well over four million acres, or 6,250 square miles, nearly the combined land mass of Connecticut and Delaware, and more than twice California’s previous annual record from 2018.

The wildfires have claimed a total of 31 lives and destroyed nearly 8,700 structures since the start of the year.

Scientists have pointed to the region’s incendiary weather, along with supercharged fuel beds overgrown with tinder dry grass and scrub, as consequences of climate change.

Donald Trump, however, has blamed poor forest management, saying the “forest floors” needed to be cleaned.

The president, a climate change denier, claimed dry, dead trees were “exploding” and igniting fires.

There is no evidence to support the theory.