Extreme weather is becoming more frequent and more intense due to the change in climate.
Climate change didn’t start the Airport, Bridge or Line fires that broke out across Southern California earlier this month, but extreme weather events are potential factors fueling all three blazes.
“We think it is at least partially due to climate change. Warming temperatures creates more dry conditions out there, there’s more evaporation happening,” said Dr. Francesca Hopkins, associate professor of climate change and sustainability at UC Riverside.
She added warming temperatures are contributing to earlier and more intense fire activity. It’s a crisis that others are recognizing and responding to.
A few weeks before those three wildfires ignited, Amazon launched the first of its kind wildfire Disaster Relief Hub in Beaumont.
All eyes are on the skies as not one but three fires burn across Southern California, and extreme heat and low humidity set the stage this week.
“These hubs allow us to respond faster and more efficiently to needs that our community response partners have because we store targeted reserves of commonly needed disaster relief items,” said Vidya Sampath, senior project manager for Amazon’s Disaster Relief Initiative.