Wildfires
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Fire

Rare force of nature: What is a firenado?

Charlie Northcott
BBC News
Sun, 21 Aug 2016 01:25 UTC
California firenado
© Getty Images
Amidst the devastation of a huge wildfire in the US state of California, photos have emerged of a rare force of nature.

Firenadoes, torrents of wind and flame that burn at extreme temperatures, have been spotted in the hills near San Bernardino, 60 miles (96km) east of Los Angeles.

The whirlwinds form when a fire heats air above it and pulls in cool air at its base, creating a self-sustaining vortex. When large enough, these swirling columns are capable of ripping trees from the ground and pulling roofs off houses.

California's inferno currently spans 58 sq mi (150 sq km) in a dry, drought-ridden region of hills. More than 82,000 people have evacuated their homes. Only 22% of the fire has been contained.

Firefighters tend to avoid firenadoes due to their extreme heat and volatility. They instead focus on tackling more stable areas, where the movement of a fire can be safely predicted.


Comment: Some other rare firenadoes observed over the last couple of months include:

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Fire

Northern Nevada wildfire increases to ten square miles


kolotv.com
Fri, 19 Aug 2016 14:16 UTC
Fireman
A federal official says more firefighters are being brought in to contain a wildfire that spread across more than 10 square miles of grassy rangeland just hours after a lightning strike in northern Nevada.

U.S. Bureau of Land Management spokesman Gregory Deimel said Friday there have been no injuries reported among the more than 200 firefighters currently battling the fire 25 miles north of Battle Mountain.

Deimel says the fire started late Thursday and grew to some 6,600 acres by mid-day Friday. It's about 20 percent contained, but has been erratic during changing weather conditions.

Deimel says flames are threatening sage grouse habitat, but the closest ranch is several miles to the northwest.

No evacuations have been ordered.

He says air tankers are helping firefighters on the ground.


Source: AP
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Fire

Amazing 'firenado' filmed near Cornelius, Oregon

CLS AMG
You Tube
Sat, 13 Aug 2016 14:01 UTC
Firenado
Firenado
This is a fire tornado -- or "firenado."

It occurred not far from Portland. The footage posted by the Cornelius Fire Department shows the twister spinning up smoke and flames as it moves across a field. Watch -- and it becomes a funnel of flames.

They are also called fire whirls, created when a wildfire or brush fire creates its own wind, which can turn into a spinning vortex of flames.

Crews were able to put out the fire without anyone getting hurt.

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Fire

Portugal's August wildfires make up half of EU's 2016 total


Fox News
Wed, 17 Aug 2016 15:11 UTC
Portugal wildfires
© Nuno Andre Ferreira/EPA
Authorities say a series of wildfires this month in Portugal has burned more than half of the land lost to blazes in the entire 28-nation European Union so far this year.

The EU's Forest Fire Information System, which collates wildfire data, says wildfires have charred more than 217,000 hectares (536,200 acres) in the bloc in 2016.

Almost 116,000 hectares (286,600 acres) of the charred forest land is in Portugal, the agency told The Associated Press.

Four people have died in the country's worst wildfires in recent memory.

However, Portuguese emergency services reported Wednesday that cooler temperatures and a drop in wind strength gave fire crews some respite after two weeks of battling intense flames.


Comment: Over 700 forest wildfires break out in Portugal

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Fire

Colorado firefighter films wildfire-fueled firenado near Beaver Creek, Colorado

Ben Hooper
UPI
Wed, 17 Aug 2016 13:30 UTC
'Firenado'
'Firenado'
A firefighter battling a Colorado wildfire captured footage of a wind-fueled firenado spinning a column of flames into the sky.

The firenado, also known as a fire tornado or fire whirl, was photographed Sunday by Charles "Trey" Bolt of the Beaver Creek Fire Department Engine 1419.

The department posted the photo to Facebook and later followed up with Bolt's video of the spinning column of flames.

"One of our firefighters captured this fire whirl yesterday on the ‪#‎BeaverCreekFire‬. Wow!" the post said.

The Beaver Creek Fire has burned through nearly 57 square miles since it began June 19. The fire is 44 percent contained, firefighters said.


The unusual phenomenon was caught on video just days after firefighters in Oregon captured footage of a similar firenado swirling on the border of the town of Cornelius.
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Fire

Intense Blue Cut wildfire in Southern California grows to over 31,000 acres; only 4 percent contained

Emily Shapiro
ABC News
Thu, 18 Aug 2016 17:22 UTC
blue cut fire
© Jonathan Alcorn/AFP/Getty ImagesSmoke rises from a burned out grove of trees at the Blue Cut wildfire in Wrightwood, California, on Aug. 17, 2016.
The Blue Cut wildfire in Southern California, which has destroyed homes and forced evacuations, has spread to over 31,000 acres today.

Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mike Mohler told ABC News today, "Explosive fires are the new normal. ... I've never seen in 22 years fire activity like that."

"The containment is going to be very slow," he said. "We still have a long fight ahead of us."

More than 1,500 personnel are at the scene today. The blaze is just 4 percent contained.

Officials said the fire, named after the Blue Cut hiking trail, began Tuesday morning for unknown reasons. It quickly grew to nearly 30,000 acres by Wednesday.

"It was such a large flame front and it came so fast and so hard that firefighters did all they could to basically get people out of the way of this advancing front," San Bernardino County Fire Chief Mark Hartwig told ABC News this morning.


Comment: State of emergency declared for wildfire raging in San Bernardino, California; 18,000 acres burned and 82,000 people evacuated

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Fire

State of emergency declared for wildfire raging in San Bernardino, California; 18,000 acres burned and 82,000 people evacuated

Alastair Jamieson
NBC News
Wed, 17 Aug 2016 07:21 UTC
Blue Cut Fire in California
© (Will Lester/AP)Firefighters battle the Blue Cut Fire along Swarthout Canyon Road in the Cajon Pass.
A fast-growing 18,000-acre wildfire burned through rural communities in California overnight, triggering a state of emergency and evacuation orders for more than 82,000 residents in the San Bernardino area.

More than 700 firefighters and other emergency workers were battling the Blue Cut fire, which flared early Tuesday some 60 miles east of Los Angeles and spread rapidly along the Cajon Pass.

Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in San Bernardino County, families fled and Interstate 15 was closed as the blaze grew.

"This moved so fast," said Darren Dalton, 51, who along with his wife and son had to get out of his house in the small town of Wrightwood. "It went from 'have you heard there's a fire?' to 'mandatory evacuation' before you could take it all in ... Suddenly it's a ghost town."

Ash rained down on motorists from billowing black smoke, while aerial pictures from KNBC captured a roadside 'firenado' in which swirling gusts of wind sent flames twisting high into the air.


Comment: Could 2016 be California's worst wildfire season?

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Fire

5,500-acre fire spreading rapidly in Southern California, evacuations underway


RT
Tue, 16 Aug 2016 22:58 UTC
Southern California fire
© CAL_FIRE / Twitter
A massive blaze is forcing mass evacuations after shutting down Southern California's Interstate-15, the main route to Las Vegas. The enormous inferno, now covering 5,500 acres, spread across its first 1,000 acres within an hour of its initial spark.

The fire was reported in Devore, California, in the late morning hours of Tuesday, and within an hour, it spread from five acres to over 5,500, according to KABC.

It broke out near the Cajon Pass, where there have been red flag warnings from the San Bernardino Fire Department, in recognition of gusty winds and low humidity, prime conditions for wildfires.

Evacuations were ordered by the US Forest Service around West Cajon Valley, between Highway 2 and the I-15, KABC reported. At least one structure was seen burning, but no injuries have been reported.

The cause remains unknown.
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Fire

Mysterious 'volcano' fire appears in Limpopo, South Africa

Dale Hes
The Times (South Africa)
Fri, 12 Aug 2016 18:26 UTC
The Council for Geoscience is on its way to investigate this strange ground fire in Limpopo.
© Mbusi Ka-Mphezulu/AENSThe Council for Geoscience is on its way to investigate this strange ground fire in Limpopo.
Scientists from the Council for Geoscience are on their way to Limpopo to investigate the mysterious appearance of a lava-like fire which has injured three people after burning unabated for three weeks at Zaaiplaas Village in Sehlakwane.

In July the Limpopo Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC) received a call from the Sekhukune District Municipality regarding the emergence of unusual fire, mud and grey ash in a damp wetland area on the outskirts of the village.

"The PDMC visited the area to conduct rapid assessment. The assessment revealed that the smoke and fires started three weeks ago. There is hot mud and grey ash in the area and three people were burnt by hot ash," said PDMC spokesperson Michael Moja.

The fire has steadily burnt through an area larger than a rugby field, transforming the wetland into what looks like an active volcanic field. A community member, Mbusi Ka-Mphezulu, posted photos on Facebook of a lava-like substance glowing from underneath the ground.
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Fire

Wildfires rage near Marseille forcing evacuations and flight diversions


RT
Wed, 10 Aug 2016 21:31 UTC
Fires in France
© Boris Horvat / AFPA picture taken near Vitrolles, southern France on August 10, 2016 shows a fire which has already devastated some 200 hectares.
Several wildfires have affected areas near Marseille, with huge clouds of smoke covering the skies above the southern French port city.

The smoke from the blaze has reportedly caused numerous delays at Marseille airport, with planes being diverted to other sites.

Several separate "significant" fires have been raging on Wednesday in the southern France region of Bouches-du-Rhone, the most densely populated department of the Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur region, local media reported.

The flames are reportedly getting close to industrial areas near Marseille, with several roads being closed off in the area. The situation remains "tense" and poses a threat to businesses in the region, France's Midi Libre reported. Hundreds of people and dozens of vehicles have been deployed to fight the blaze.


Comment: According to Marseille's deputy mayor, Julien Ruas, the size of the fire was "absolutely exceptional", and he advised people to stay off the roads. Some reports suggest that more than 10,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in the Rhone river delta area.

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