Half million acres burned in one day - Alaska shatters record for worst June wildfire outbreak ever.

[Blue_In_AK]

https://robertscribbler.wordpress.com/2015/06/29/half-a-million-acres-burned-in-just-one-day-alaska-shatters-record-for-worst-june-wildfire-outbreak-ever/

All throughout the mainstream media last week we heard the same myopic litany — ‘a massive wildfire outbreak ongoing in Alaska is not abnormal.’ Well, today, all pretense that there was anything normal about the 314 wildfires still raging throughout the state has gone up in a cloud of boreal forest, tundra, and thawed permafrost emitted smoke.

As of 6:28 AM Alaska time today, 1,912,000 acres had burned in Alaska since the start of the year. That’s roughly 1,800,000 more acres burned than just before the current wildfire outbreak started on June 18th and 497,000 more acres burned over just the last 24 hour period alone. By comparison, the previous worst ever June fire outbreak for Alaska during 2004 burned less than 1,200,000 acres of the Arctic state.


With 42 hours left in June and with more than 300 fires still active, it’s pretty clear that the current fire season is a historic, unprecedented, record-shattering event. One that will almost certainly break the 2 million acre mark and may show double the over-all previous record burning during June of 2004. An excessive new record that is occurring in the ominous context of the hottest year in the global climate record and a vastly irresponsible dumping of 50 billion tons of heat-trapping, CO2 equivalent (of which 32 billion tons is CO2) gasses into the atmosphere through fossil fuel burning and related industry each and every year.

<snip>

Map of wildfires currently burning in the state





This is serious business, folks.

[delrem]

1. As the ex-gov of Alaska said: drill, baby, drill.

And as the guy who beat her team, just because they were so irresponsible, has done: frack, baby, frack.

[Blue_In_AK]

3. Add to that, burn, baby, burn.

Most of these fires are lightning-caused. I read earlier this evening that between June 21 and June 23 there were 50,000 lightning strikes in the state. We had very little snow last winter and not much rain yet this summer, plus high temperatures, so the whole state is a tinderbox. It's raining gently right now in Anchorage, but I don't know how the rest of the state is doing. It's supposed to be warm again by the weekend.

[roguevalley]

24. my hometown in Oregon is going to be

109 degrees thursday. In the end of June. I fear August for them.

[JDPriestly]

2. Also huge fires in Siberia. From April 2015.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/20/us/siberia-fires-seattle-red-sunsets/index.html

Climate change is real in right-wing-land. Maybe this will finally mean we get to do something about it.

[joshcryer]

5. Was wondering about that.

Can't be just localized to Alaska...

Looks like Canada has over a dozen as well: http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/?extent=canada

edit: better Canada map, looks like it's even bigger when all the 3k+ fires are considered: http://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/report

[JDPriestly]

7. Where is Inhofe's snowball when we need it?

Joking of course. I wonder what Inhofe thinks about this. He probably will say it is just part of God's plan.

Makes me sick. I have grandchildren. All those trees that took many years to grow. It is very sad.

[joshcryer]

8. Natural cycle.

Of course.

Then some long rant about how fires make stronger ecosystems or some nonsense.

[Blue_In_AK]

11. Fire is a natural cycle to some extent,

but not fire on steroids, which is what we have here. We always do have fires, and always have, but nothing like this. Very little snow last winter, an early and hot spring and summer, little rain, 50,000 lightning strikes in three days - it's all climate-related, and it's not normal.

Not to mention all the CO2 and methane coming from the melting and burning permafrost -- the planet doesn't need this. (Unless, of course, the planet is trying to kill us off. )

[Divernan]

16. NW Canada & U.S. "light up"/break heat records by 4 degrees(from OP link)

As Alaska Experiences Worst Ever Burning for June, Northwest Territory Lights Up

As Alaska burned through half a million acres of forest in just one day, a massive heatwave was also setting off extreme wildfires throughout northwest Canada. It was the same heatwave that broke new temperature records all across Washington, and the mountain west. Temperatures in places like Walla, Walla Washington hit 113 degrees Fahrenheit (45 Celsius) on Sunday — breaking the previous all time June temperature record for the day by 4 degrees (2.2 C). A pulse of heat rising off the back of a strengthening El Nino in the Pacific, running all the way up the Western Seaboard and Mountains of the US and driving deep into northwestern Canada

.

[Hekate]

4. Holy shit

[merrily]

6. I am so sorry for everyone suffering from this.

The hard-headness of the deniers is unfathomable. It's not as though this doesn't affect them, their kids and their grandkids as much as it affects us and our loved ones.

Please stay safe.

[Blue_In_AK]

9. We've been staying fairly close to home

where it's safe so far this summer. Here in Anchorage, in the part of town that I live in, we're relatively safe from wildfires. People who live on the Hillside above the Anchorage Bowl have to be a little more careful and vigilant, as the huge Chugach State Park is right behind them. There are lots of PSAs on TV about being fire-safe.

But I do worry for the people out in the Bush who don't have the fire-fighting infrastructure that we have here in the city. They've had to evacuate some of those villages, which must be terrifying. The firefighters are stretched so thin, especially with other states having significant fires, too. I just hope for lots of rain and a good snow cover next winter.

[merrily]

10. I'm glad it doesn't seem to be an imminent threat to you, but my heart

breaks for others. And also for humankind.

Boston had LOTS of snow this past winter (for us, anyway). However, it seemed that, as soon as it all melted, they started saying we need rain.

[Blue_In_AK]

12. Texas got all the rain.

[merrily]

13. Yes, I have relatives in Houston.

[brer cat]

14. That has worried me also, Blue.

A large infrastructure is needed to fight such a massive and widespread outbreak. Are any states sending crews to help?

[Divernan]

17. US Air Force expedites delivery of firefighting supplies to Alaska

The U.S. Air Force joined the massive firefighting effort currently underway in Alaska on Sunday by helping to expedite an enormous load of firefighting supplies to Alaska from the Defense Logistics Agency to replenish the warehouse at the Alaska Fire Service. The bulk of the shipment, which weighed more than 127,000 pounds, was flown to Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks in a C-5M Galaxy transport plane from the 60th Air Mobility Wing at Travis Air Force Base.

The Defense Logistics Agency is the normal supply source for the federal wildland fire supply system and firefighting supplies are normally trucked to Alaska from the Lower 48. However, given the urgency of the situation, the U.S. Air Force offered to ferry the supplies to Alaska. The shipment included pumps, chainsaws, water handling equipment, prepackaged meals, fire clothing and assorted other kinds of durable and consumable supplies that are in demand due to the high fire activity in Alaska.

Eielson AFB was used as the delivery point because the Galaxy requires a longer runway than is available at Fort Wainwright. Some of the supplies were transported to Alaska on previously scheduled USAF DC-10 flights. Personnel from the Alaska Fire Service and Eielson Air Force Base then loaded the supplies onto flatbed tractor-trailers for transport to the Alaska Fire Service warehouse on Fort Wainwright.

https://www.facebook.com/AK.Forestry

[brer cat]

18. Thanks for adding that.

I didn't know the Air Force ever helped out, and this is not a situation where trucking supplies would be a timely solution. OT, but I do love seeing our military used for the greater good and not just war.

[jwirr]

27. Even transporting firefihters into that area is a big job. Our fighters use to go to Montana when

they had a grass fire but Alaska is a long ways away. Don't know how that would work.

[RiverLover]

15. I feel bad for you guys...& the wildlife being killed, as well.

May you get plenty of rain & soon!!

[steve2470]

19. many good vibes to the people and creatures of AK! nt

[Vinca]

20. Hmmm . . . could this be some of that global whatchamacallit the libruls always harp on?

This is how the right will come to accept global warming. They never believe anything until it hits home and in this case it appears it's burning home.

[hatrack]

21. Yes, and then will come the "response", feeble and halting and oh-so-late . . .

If anyone would like a preview of what it will look like, I suggest a glance through political and public responses across the EU as to how to handle Greece.

You know, rational, sensible and well-thought-out, though on a far larger scale and over a much longer period of time.

[raouldukelives]

22. Horrible.

[City Lights]

23. Wow, that's just awful.

[Uncle Joe]

25. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Blue_In_AK.

[Blue_In_AK]

26. And thank you for your continued interest.

[Uncle Joe]

31. ...

[2naSalit]

28. Indeed.

My neighbor is an IC and some of the smokejumpers from my local SJB are there, have been for weeks. Probably won't see any of them again until late autumn.

[malaise]

29. Freaking wow!

It's likely to be the hottest June on record on Jamaica as well.
Climate change is real and it is serious.

[joeybee12]

30. This is nuts...

I really wish there were a hell for people like Palin in Inohue (the jackass for Oklahoma) who deny this shit and thereby stymie any action we should have already been taking.

[valerief]

32. Condo development!

[mcar]

33. That is frightening Blue

Stay safe.

[riderinthestorm]

34. Oh. My. Gawd!!!! Awful!

stay safe Blue!

[LWolf]

35. Holy shit.

Stay safe, Alaska.