The National Agency Fire Center foresees the increased chance of a blaze in most of California from June to August.
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SAN FRANCISCO – The major heat wave expected in California’s Central Valley this weekend will bring triple-digit temperatures and increased fire risk.
And this year, typically cool coastal areas may not be spared, increasing the likelihood that they have become even more widespread for the states that have long been plagued by them.
The National Agency Fire Center’s summer wildfire outlook foresees the increased chances of fire in most California from June to August.
The average temperatures in some Golden State are projected to exceed summer historic norms. However, there may be a more unusual phenomenon being developed.
UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a recent online presentation that the weather model points to notable differences during recent summers when the state’s hotspots are primarily concentrated inland areas.
High temperatures on the coast
“After May’s grey and June’s dark season,” he said.
That’s a disturbing prospect after the fire season, which includes the fourth-largest flame in the state’s history. A fire in the park outside Chico burned nearly 430,000 acres – and January’s devastating Los Angeles Inferno was well past the typical endpoint of the season.
Over the weekend, temperatures are expected to exceed 100 degrees in central Valley cities such as Sacramento, Fresno and Bakersfield. Sacramento’s National Weather Service office has already issued extreme heat watches from early May 30 to late June 1, warning of the risk of heat-related injuries.
Accuweather senior meteorologist Scott Homan said the chances of wildfires also increase after receiving sub-average precipitation, particularly in winter and early spring. Most of the area is drought, and the important part is extreme drought.
The risk of fires has increased since this weekend
“Occasionally, offshore refreshing conditions will dry out the fuel even more and we will see potential grass fires rising in the valley area later this week,” he said.
The National Agency Fire Center has noticed that snowmen melt faster than usual in warm western climates, and that even mountainous regions, where there was a large accumulation, would dissipate by late June, removing the barriers to wildfires that spread throughout the summer.
“In general, we continue to see dry weather,” Homan said. “The risk of fire increases, especially in areas currently in mild droughts, at least in a dry pattern from the south-facing central valley.”
