Climate Change Multiplies The Mayhem Caused By Human Error
Climate change is often blamed for the severity and spread of wildfires, even when human error is the initial trigger, due to the way it alters the conditions under which these fires occur. While human actions—such as downed power lines, careless campfires, or arson—are the direct causes of many wildfires, climate change significantly amplifies the factors that make fires more dangerous and harder to control once they are ignited says Manu Shrivastava
As Southern California grapples with a wave of catastrophic wildfires, Los Angeles is once again under siege by nature's most destructive force. This latest series of fires, which have spread across multiple parts of the city, highlight an alarming and increasingly destructive pattern: a deadly convergence of weather, climate change, and human habitation.
By January 10, 2025, these fires have already burned tens of thousands of acres, destroyed thousands of homes, forced to evacuate more than 1,00,000 people, and claimed the lives of at least ten individuals. Firefighters have been battling not only the flames but the powerful winds that exacerbate the fires’ speed and scale, with winds reaching speeds of nearly 100 miles per hour.
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| The fire in Los Angeles in January 2025 destroyed houses across thousands of acres |
Among the fires currently ravaging the region, the Palisades Fire stands out, having already consumed over 20,000 acres of land. The Eaton Fire near Pasadena has similarly wreaked havoc, burning through 13,000 acres, while smaller fires like the Sunset Fire in Hollywood Hills continue to contribute to the region's crisis.
In response, President Joe Biden issued a major disaster declaration, unlocking federal funds to aid in firefighting efforts and recovery, though experts warn that this may only be a temporary solution in the face of relentless weather conditions.
The fires' unprecedented scale and speed have shocked many, but they were, in fact, highly anticipated. Fire forecasters had been warning about the risk of large fires in Southern California, citing dry conditions and a lack of significant rainfall since the start of winter. The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) had even predicted above-normal fire potential in Southern California for early January 2025, a forecast that proved to be tragically accurate.
As global temperatures rise due to climate change, heatwaves become more frequent and intense. High temperatures dry out vegetation, such as trees, grass, and bushes, making them more susceptible to ignition. Once a fire starts—whether from human error or natural causes—it can spread much more quickly in these dry, heat-drenched conditions.
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| The unprecedented scale and speed of the fires in Southern California have shocked many |
In California, for instance, the increased frequency of heatwaves in recent years has led to extremely dry conditions, creating an environment where even small human mistakes, such as an unattended campfire or sparks from a vehicle, can cause large-scale fires to erupt.
Climate change is also contributing to longer and more severe droughts in many parts of the world. Drought conditions make the soil, vegetation, and even trees dry out, creating "fuel" that makes it easier for fires to ignite and spread. This also means that once a fire is started, it’s more likely to burn longer and hotter, as there’s more dry material for the fire to consume.
A case in point being the 2018 Camp Fire in California, one of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history, occurred after years of drought in the region. The dry conditions allowed the fire to spread rapidly, even though it was sparked by a downed power line—a direct human cause.
Climate change also affects weather patterns, contributing to stronger winds in certain regions. Winds play a critical role in spreading wildfires, as they can carry embers over long distances, starting new fires or accelerating the spread of existing ones. When human error causes a fire, strong winds can quickly turn it into a large-scale disaster.
In 2017, the Tubbs Fire in California spread at an alarming rate due to high winds. Though the fire was sparked by human activity, the winds turned a small fire into one that destroyed more than 5,000 structures and caused billions of dollars in damage.
As temperatures rise and droughts become more prolonged, the fire season is extending. In areas like California, wildfires that traditionally occurred in late summer and fall are now starting earlier in the year and burning later into the season. This prolonged fire season increases the window of opportunity for human error to trigger a fire, and it also increases the risk of fires burning out of control for longer periods.
In recent years, wildfires in California have started earlier and burned later. In 2020, the fire season lasted well into the fall, with the August Complex Fire becoming the largest wildfire in the state’s history, burning over one million acres.
While human error is a major cause of many wildfires, climate change is also linked to an increase in lightning strikes, which can ignite fires. Higher temperatures and moisture levels associated with climate change contribute to storm activity, leading to more frequent lightning strikes, particularly in regions prone to wildfires. This can further exacerbate fires, especially when combined with human-caused ignitions.
The 2020 California wildfires were a combination of human-caused fires and those sparked by lightning strikes. The state saw more than 12,000 lightning strikes in one week, resulting in numerous new fires, even as human-caused fires continued to burn.
Climate change is altering ecosystems, making certain areas more prone to fire. Invasive species, like dry grasses or flammable shrubs, are becoming more common in some areas due to changing temperatures and precipitation patterns. These species create more 'fuel' for fires and are often more easily ignited by human activity. Additionally, the loss of fire-resistant vegetation, such as certain tree species, further increases fire risk.
In the Amazon Rainforest, changing climate conditions are contributing to drier conditions and more flammable vegetation. While human actions, such as illegal land clearing through fires, are the direct cause of many fires, the region's changing climate has made it more vulnerable to such activities, exacerbating the impact.
As climate change leads to shifts in temperature and weather patterns, more people are living in areas that were traditionally too difficult or dangerous to settle. The increased development of homes, infrastructure, and tourism in fire-prone areas (the "wildland-urban interface") means more human activity and a higher risk of accidental fires. These human settlements are now more vulnerable to wildfires, which can be exacerbated by extreme heat, drought, and wind.
The 2018 Woolsey Fire in Southern California was partly caused by human activity and also fueled by dry conditions, extreme heat, and wind. As more people have moved into areas near forests or grasslands, the risk of human-caused fires has increased, and climate change has made these areas more prone to intense fires.
While human error remains the direct cause of many wildfires, climate change plays a critical role in setting the stage for these fires to become much more destructive and harder to control. Higher temperatures, prolonged droughts, increased wind speeds, and longer fire seasons create an environment where even small sparks can quickly escalate into large-scale disasters.
Thus, even though climate change may not always directly cause the ignition of a fire, it is a major amplifier of the conditions that allow fires to spread rapidly and intensify once they are started—whether by human negligence or other factors. Addressing both human behaviour and the broader environmental impacts of climate change is essential in mitigating wildfire risks and minimising the devastating consequences of these increasingly frequent and intense fires.
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