Fires have always been well known on the west coast. Most of them being man-made. But the fires blazing in the year 2020 have kicked it up a notch in damage and wilderness. So far 3.5 million acres have been burnt and at least 26 fatalities in California alone. The cause is what scientists have been trying to warn everyone about for years.

So far wildfires have whipped through many states and have left a toll of burnt buildings and charred hills. It has left some people stranded not knowing what to do or where to go. People everywhere have been having to evacuate because of the fires, including some students’ families closer to Vanden HighSchool.

“When I woke up that morning my dad told me to pack what I can because by the time it was 6:00 am the fire was about 8 miles away from us.” Timia Dundaman, a student at Vanden High School, shared. Fires can become out of control and leave citizens with barely any evacuation warnings. But the fires that have been blazing through the coast have been unpredictable.

Scientists have been blaming Climate change for the strange outbreak of wildfires. The science behind Climate change causing wildfires is: since we’ve been having rising temperatures the heat takes more moisture out of the ground leaving it dry and more prone to being flammable, making it easier to be caught on fire.

“This is yet another example of where uncertainty is not our friend,” says Michael Mann, distinguished professor of atmospheric science at Penn State. “As we learn more, we are finding that many climate change impacts, including these sorts of extreme weather events, are playing out faster and with greater magnitude than our models predicted.” supplies CBS News. As people can see, the air and sky that have been haunting people for days are out of the ordinary and are bigger than what scientists could have predicted. 

“In our increasingly warming world, ecosystems will continue to dry out, and subsequently, fires will only get more fierce, more frequent, and burn more of the state.” reported by The Mechanics. 

Climate change has started to make itself shown everywhere, from the LNU Complex fire caused by lighting to the Creek fire that is ruining homes and taking lives. Most fires that start are “84% human-made and the 16% are caused by lighting” stated the Los Angeles Times. Some ways fires can be made are from power lines and electrical equipment, arson, campfire, and the list goes on. But there are ways people can help stop fires before they happen. 

Citizens can help not create fires by being careful when using flammable objects, remember to extinguish campfires and fire pits, report unattended fires, keep fireworks away from forests, don’t throw cigarettes out of a moving vehicle, and so on. 

 “Just get out, don’t wait,” McNeal told the TV station, urging people to follow evacuation orders. “If you think it’s going to be too much to get your sprinklers on before you get out of there, forget those too. Forget it. Get out. Just get out. It ain’t worth it.” supplied CNBC News, on the fires burning through California. These fires are no joke and show themselves as dangerous and should be taken seriously.