Wildfires
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300 wildfires on Indonesia's Sumatra island causes haze, prompting calls to work from home

A boat sails on Musi River as thick haze from forest fires
© Muhammad HattaA boat sails on Musi River as thick haze from forest fires shroud the city of Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, Oct. 2, 2023. Officials on Indonesia’s Sumatra island on Monday asked residents to work from home as more than 300 forest and peatland fires were causing widespread haze in the region.
More than 300 forest and peatland fires on Indonesia's Sumatra island caused hazy skies across the region on Monday, prompting government officials to ask people to work from home.

The military, police and local government were working together to extinguish the fires, which were burning in 316 places across South Sumatra province, but their work was complicated by the extreme dry weather, said Iriansyah, the head of the South Sumatra Disaster Management Agency.

The smoky haze drifted from the fires toward Palembang, the capital of South Palembang province, causing unhealthy air conditions for the area's 1.7 million people.

"There is a high potential for people to suffer from respiratory tract infections, coughing, shortness of breath and eye irritation," said Iriansyah, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.

The government in South Sumatra last week called on schools to delay their opening time, as the haze tends to decrease during the day. But on Monday, the schools asked students to attend classes online, as the air quality had worsened and was categorized as "dangerous."


Fire

Firefighters battle peatland fires on Indonesia's Sumatra island

Firefighters attempt to extinguish a fire that razes through a peatland field in Ogan Ilir South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023.
© APFirefighters attempt to extinguish a fire that razes through a peatland field in Ogan Ilir South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023.
Firefighters in Indonesia were battling several peatland fires in several locations on Sumatra island on Wednesday, officials said.

The fires started Tuesday afternoon near residential areas and along a highway in three villages. The firefighters were hampered because water sources were far away and several reservoirs were dry.

Forest and peat fires are an annual problem in Indonesia that strains relations with neighboring countries. Smoke from the fires has blanketed parts of Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and southern Thailand with a noxious haze.


Fire

Rare 'firenado' filmed during Sabine Parish fires in Louisiana on August 25

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As statewide fires continue to burn, video footage of Sabine Parish's wildfires show a rare weather phenom: a firenado.

The combination of hot air from a wildfire and wind gusts traveling in different directions can cause a mix between a fire and a tornado, according to AccuWeather.

The footage was taken amidst Northwest Louisiana wildfires on Aug. 25.


Fire

Peru death toll rises to five in forest fire in Apurimac, Peru

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The death toll in the forest fire raging in the southern Peruvian department of Apurimac has risen to five following the discovery of two new bodies, according to the latest official toll.

The head of the Social Health Insurance (EsSalud) network in Aymaraes province, Augusto Maldonado, told national media that the bodies found by rescue units correspond to a villager identified as Juan Romero Ayquipa, 22, and Daniel Coicca Benítez, 63.

Maldonado added that five of the six injured who were hospitalized in the Chalhuanca emergency hospital have already been discharged. One remains hospitalized with minor burns, but with a favorable prognosis.


Fire

Wildfire rages in Turkey forcing evacuations

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Efforts to contain a wildfire in Turkey's northwestern Canakkale province continue on Wednesday, as several villages are evacuated. (August 23).


Comment: In adjacent country: At least 18 new deaths reported in Greece wildfires


Fire

At least 18 new deaths reported in Greece wildfires

A house is shown burning during a wildfire in Avanta, near Alexandroupolis, in northern Greece. Hot, dry and windy conditions have seen dozens of wildfires break out across the country.
© Sakis MitrolidisA house is shown burning during a wildfire in Avanta, near Alexandroupolis, in northern Greece. Hot, dry and windy conditions have seen dozens of wildfires break out across the country.
Greek firefighters found the bodies of 18 people in an area of northeastern Greece ravaged by a major wildfire burning for days, authorities said Tuesday.

Greek police activated the country's Disaster Victim Identification Team to identify the bodies, which were found near a shack in the Avanta area in the northeastern Alexandroupolis region, Ioannis Artopios, a spokesperson for the fire department, said in a televised statement.

Given no reports of missing people had been filed in the area, authorities were examining the possibility the casualties were migrants who had entered the country from the nearby border with Turkey, Artopios said.

Hot, dry and windy conditions have seen dozens of wildfires break out across the country. On Monday, two people died and two firefighters were injured in separate fires in northern and central Greece.


Fire

Evacuations ordered after winds whip Northern California wildfire near site of 2022 deadly blaze

Klamath fire
© Roger Matthews/Caltrans/APFire: Klamath National Forest
Rural areas near California's border with Oregon were under evacuation orders Wednesday after gusty winds from a thunderstorm sent a lightning-sparked wildfire racing through national forest lands, authorities said.

The blaze in Siskiyou County, dubbed the Head Fire, was one of at least 20 fires - most of them tiny - that erupted in the Klamath National Forest as thunderstorms brought lightning and downdrafts that drove the flames through timber and rural lands.

Forest Supervisor Rachel Smith told The Associated Press:
"This has been a fire that has moved extremely quickly. Just in a matter of a couple of minutes yesterday afternoon the fire grew from just 50 acres (20.2 hectares) to nearly 1,500 acres (607 hectares). This is the kind of growth that historically we have not experienced on our forest prior to the last couple of years."
An overflight late Tuesday measured the fire at 4.2 square miles (10.8 square kilometers), slightly smaller than initial estimates after it grew rapidly in just a few hours. A forest statement said fire behavior also decreased during the night.

Firefighters were working to protect homes near the confluence of the Scott and Klamath rivers, a very lightly populated area about 20 miles (32.2 kilometers) from the California-Oregon state line and about 50 miles northwest of Mt. Shasta.

Cloud Lightning

Best of the Web: Maui wildfires death toll climbs to 480 locals claim, as Hawaii morgue workers run out of body bags

Maui residents say the actual wildfire death toll so far is likely closer to 480 and reveal the MPD's morgue office (pictured) ran out of body bags in the early days of the ongoing search and recovery operation in Lahaina
Maui residents say the actual wildfire death toll so far is likely closer to 480 and reveal the MPD's morgue office (pictured) ran out of body bags in the early days of the ongoing search and recovery operation in Lahaina
Maui authorities are dramatically underplaying the number of people known to have died in the inferno that ripped through Lahaina last week - with locals telling DailyMail.com that the actual death toll is at least 480 and that morgues had run out of body bags.

The figure is quadruple that of the official number of 111 - and some of the relatives of the victims have been left to uncover the remains of their loved ones themselves due to the glacial progress of the search and recovery operation.

On Tuesday, Maui mayor Richard Bissen said just 25 per cent of the stricken town had been searched, although he expected that figure to increase to 85 per cent by Saturday.

But DailyMail.com photos taken on Wednesday showed hundreds of cars and vehicles still unsearched - with just a handful marked with an orange X to show they'd been looked at.


Fire

Canada wildfires: State of emergency declared in British Columbia as firefighters combat blazes

Homes are pictured near the McDougall Creek
© Ben Nelms/CBCHomes are pictured near the McDougall Creek Wildfire as it burns in West Kelowna, B.C. on Friday, Aug. 18, 2023. B.C. Premier David Eby announced a provincewide state of emergency after a significant number of homes were destroyed by the fast-burning wildfire.
The premier of the Canadian province of British Columbia has declared a state of emergency, citing what he described as the worst wildfire season ever as thousands of individuals have been evacuated from cities to the east of Vancouver.

David Eby said on Friday night: "Over the past 24 hours, the situation has evolved rapidly and we are in for an extremely challenging situation in the days ahead."

He continued: "We are facing the worst wildfire season in our province's history. This unprecedented situation has come to a head this evening. In just the last 24 hours, the situation has evolved and deteriorated quite rapidly."

Amidst blustery conditions in the hills and mountains above West Kelowna, firefighters are battling the uncontained McDougall Creek wildfire, which has spread over 10,500 hectares of land. This volatile situation has prompted the evacuation of thousands of residents.

West Kelowna, a municipality with a population of 36,000, is situated approximately 300 kilometres [180 miles] east of Vancouver. Evacuations were also being carried out north of nearby Kelowna, a city with a population of about 150,000 also on Okanagan Lake, the local media reported.


Comment: Related: Canada wildfire: Evacuees flee Yellowknife as fire nears northern city


Fire

More than 3,000 people flee wildfires in popular French tourist spot

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A popular part of France is the latest area to be hit by devastating wildfires with more than 3,000 tourists evacuated from a holiday spot.

The blaze ripped through 500 hectares of land in the holiday region of Pyrenees-Orientales, close to Spain's border.

The fire broke out on Monday afternoon at 5pm and spread rapidly near the villages of Saint-Andre, Sorede and the seaside resort of Argeles, due to the 'extremely hot weather, drought and strong winds of up to 180km/hr'.

It has so far gutted around 30 homes, incinerated cars and destroyed a campsite in the commune of Saint-Andre.