Jan Wesner Childs
More than 6,300 square miles of land has burned across California, Washington and Oregon in a deadly string of wildfires that's creating dangerously unhealthy air conditions for millions of people from Los Angeles to Vancouver.
The level of toxic pollution in the air Saturday morning in Salem, Oregon, was beyond what government air quality indexes measure, according to the EPA's Air Now website.
At those levels, even healthy people can experience discomfort including irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath. Those with heart and lung disease or other health issues could face life-threatening conditions.
Portland had some of the worst air quality in the world. Restaurants in Seattle were forced to shut down as a smoky, smothering haze settled over the city.
“All of our business is pretty much on the deck right now because of the coronavirus," Kevin Murray, executive chef at Ray’s Boathouse, told KOMO-TV. "To do the right thing we have to shut down."
(MORE: Will Extreme Weather Keep Getting Worse? Scientists Say Yes.)
Some of the fires in California have been burning for several weeks, but most of the blazes in Oregon and Washington started amid record heat and extremely dry conditions over the Labor Day weekend. Winds fanned the flames of both new and existing fires.
"This has already been the second worst fire season in state history. It happened in 5 days," Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said on Twitter.
A pattern change could bring some relief early in the week, although temperatures will remain warmer than average through the weekend, weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Belles said Saturday.
"Tomorrow, there may be a slight uptick in winds across parts of northern California, Oregon and Washington state. This could lead to more critical fire weather conditions in parts of those states," Belles said. "The pattern change could begin by late Monday with an increase in moisture, possibly some light rainfall, and at least some motion in the atmosphere to begin to move the smoke out of the area."
The death toll from the fires continues to rise as first responders search the smoldering ruins of buildings, vehicles and charred landscapes. Eleven people have died this week in California's fires, and one in Washington.
Volunteer Elizabeth Stoltz of Heisson waters the Fort Vancouver Garden amid wildfire smoke in Vancouver, Wash., Friday, Sept. 11, 2020.In Oregon, the Lane County Sheriff's Office announced on Friday a body was found in a residence in the Holiday Farm Fire. At least eight people have died from fires in the state, according to The Associated Press.
Husband and wife Larry Tripoli and Fran Howe huddled in the Santiam River behind their house east of Salem as flames burned around them.
Tripoli, 69, told The Oregonian they tried to leave, but he saw flames jump through a neighbor's fence as he opened the garage door.
“We don’t have time, Fran,” Tripoli said to his wife.
They waded into the water as trees burned all around them.
“I said, ‘I love you, in case something happens',” Howe, 63, said. “I really thought we were going to die.”
Rescuers picked them up 18 hours later. Their house is gone.
“If we didn’t have that river, we would have died,” Howe said.
(WATCH: Pyrocumulonimbus Cloud Spawned by California’s Creek Fire May Be Largest Ever in U.S.)
At least 60 people remain unaccounted for in Oregon, according to The Oregonian.
Arthur Duszak, 80, wonders what happened to his neighbors at Royal Oaks Manor, a mobile home park that was wiped out by flames in Phoenix, Oregon. Duszak made it out safely.
“There were some who didn’t want to go,” he said. “I don’t know if they left later or they are no longer with us.”
Scientists, experts and government officials say climate change, which fuels drought and heat waves, is making each fire season progressively worse.
"This is a climate damn emergency," an angry California Gov. Gavin Newsom said while touring damage in Butte County, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. "This is real and it’s happening. This is the perfect storm."
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
No comments:
Post a Comment