The Shadow
In response to the damaging wildfires impacting the Southeastern U.S., the National Fire Protection Association® (NFPA®) is providing information and resources for journalists covering these fires, which are being driven by extremely dry, windy conditions.
According to NFPA, dry conditions present an ideal environment for wildfires to ignite and spread rapidly. Winds don’t necessarily cause wildfires, but wind-driven wildfire can happen just about anywhere. High winds exacerbate the risk because they add oxygen to the fire, which increases its intensity, and helps to move fire very rapidly through vegetation. They also loft embers for a mile or more ahead of the fire front.
There are more than 45 million homes in the wildland/urban interface (WUI), areas that are at high risk from destruction by wildfires. These statistics underscore that the U.S. is facing a wildfire crisis.
Between 2014-2023, wildfires have destroyed more than 80,000 structures in the U.S., the majority of which were homes. Record high temperatures, drought conditions, and high winds from severe weather events have been blamed for increased wildfire activity in high-risk areas in the U.S., Canada, and Europe.
“We can’t control the wind, but we can modify fuels, whether those are grasses, shrubs, forests, or our homes and their immediate surroundings,” said Michele Steinberg, director of the NFPA wildfire division. “That’s where efforts to prepare homes and neighborhoods in advance can make a substantive difference in reducing their susceptibility to wildfire.”
Wildfire Community Preparedness Day, annual campaign hosted by NFPA the first Saturday in May, encourages neighbors to come together on a single day and complete projects that can help make their homes and communities safer from wildfire. Typical activities might include simple, low-cost home improvement projects such as clearing dead leaves, debris, and pine needles from roofs and gutters; keeping lawns and native grasses mowed to a height of four inches; or removing anything stored underneath decks or porches that could burn. This year’s campaign is Saturday, May 2
