New Era Of Super Fires

Scientists and other experts say prolonged modern droughts and climate change are creating a new perfect storm of super fires and other extreme events. "Based on what we know and in which direction the climate is going, yes, we can expect more frequent super fires," said Marko Princevac, a fire expert at the University of California at Riverside.

There is scientific consensus that climate change will lead to much more intense fires, more dry areas. From January through April, the average temperature for the contiguous US was 4 degrees above the 20th century average, making this period the second warmest on record. The six worst fire seasons since 1960 have all occurred since 2000, many Western states have experienced the largest wildfires in their states history.