The 2015 California wildfire season was a series of
wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...
s that burned across the state of
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. By the end of 2015 a total of 8,745 fires were recorded, burning across the state.
[ Approximately 3,159 structures were damaged or destroyed by wildfires, and at least 7 fatalities were recorded.
On September 11, after the ]Butte Fire
The Butte Fire was a rapidly moving wildfire during the 2015 California wildfire season that started on September 9 in Amador County, California. The fire burned .
The fire started at 2:26 P.M. on Wednesday, September 9, just east of Jackso ...
exploded from a size of Governor Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of St ...
declared a state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...
.
Nationwide fire season
The National Interagency Fire Center
The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, Idaho is the physical facility which is the home to the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC), and the National Multi-Agency Coordination group (NMAC or MAC).
The center works clo ...
reported in mid-August that the 2015 fire season had been the most destructive since 2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
. Nationwide, a total of had burned, which is roughly triple the total land area burned from the same time span in 2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
.
Fatalities
The season also proved to be a deadly one for firefighters
A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions also ...
battling the many blazes throughout the state. A United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...
member from South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
died on July 31 from carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as "flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large e ...
, while battling the Frog Fire in the Modoc National Forest. A second firefighter was killed on August 8 by a falling tree, while battling the Sierra Fire
Sierra (Spanish for "mountain range" and "saw", from Latin '' serra'') may refer to the following:
Places Mountains and mountain ranges
* Sierra de Juárez, a mountain range in Baja California, Mexico
* Sierra de las Nieves, a mountain range i ...
south of Echo Summit
Echo Summit is a mountain pass over the Sierra Nevada in the western United States, located in eastern El Dorado County, California. At above sea level, it is the highest point on U.S. Route 50 in California, which traverses it at postmile 66 ...
. A 72-year-old disabled woman was killed in her home by the fast-moving Valley Fire.
Fires
Below is a list of all fires that exceeded during the 2015 California wildfire season, as well as the fires that caused significant damage.
See also
* List of California wildfires
* 2015 Oregon wildfires
* 2015 Washington wildfires
The 2015 wildfire season was the largest in Washington state history, with more than burning across the state from June to September. As many as 3,000 firefighters including 800 Washington National Guard members were deployed to fight the fires. ...
* Climate change in California
* 2014–15 North American winter
The 2014–15 North American winter was frigid and prolifically wintry, especially across the eastern half of North America in the months of January–March. The season began early, with many places in North America experiencing their first win ...
References
External links
2015 California Fire Map
(a Google map created by CAL FIRE)
California current incident information from CAL FIRE
California wildfires on the US Forestry Incident Information System
(InciWeb)
{{California wildfires
Wildfires in California by year
California, 2015