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What’s driving Maui’s devastating fires, and how climate change is fueling those conditions

by Sophia Chen
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fokus keyword: Maui's wildfires

A perilous convergence of factors has ignited the severe wildfires tearing through Hawaii, inflicting significant damage. These factors include forceful winds, low moisture levels, and arid vegetation.

Climate change is suspected of heightening the chances of such drastic weather events, as currently demonstrated on Maui island. The tragedy has claimed at least six lives and wiped out a significant tourist destination.

These unprecedented combinations are contributing to extreme fire weather, according to Kelsey Copes-Gerbitz, a researcher at the University of British Columbia. She emphasized that these catastrophic wildfires prove that no place is safe from such issues.

A closer examination of the Maui fires reveals their cause:

The variation in air pressure led to extraordinarily strong trade winds, which amplified the destructive flames, say meteorologists. This difference in air pressure, linked to the North Pacific High and the area of low pressure near the equator, was further worsened by Hurricane Dora, which recently passed to the south of the islands. It created “unusually strong trade winds,” stated Genki Kino, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Honolulu.

Even Hawaii’s state climatologist, Pao-Shin Chu, was surprised by the effect of Dora from a distance of around 500 miles (800 kilometers) away.

The deadly combination of strong winds, low humidity, and dry, flammable vegetation creates a serious wildfire risk, even in tropical areas like Maui. These simultaneous conditions are often termed ‘red flag conditions’ by the National Weather Service, says Erica Fleishman, director of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute.

THE ROLE OF CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change is causing vegetation to dry out in many regions of the world, largely due to hotter temperatures, as Fleishman pointed out. Even with consistent precipitation levels, higher temperatures lead to quicker drying.

Clay Trauernicht, a fire scientist, highlighted how the wet season can cause plants like Guinea grass to grow rapidly on Maui. Once dried, this invasive species forms a tinderbox ideal for wildfire, a problem that will only worsen with hotter and drier conditions.

THE CONNECTION TO STRONGER HURRICANES

Climate change does more than just increase fire risks by raising temperatures; it also escalates the probability of more potent hurricanes. These storms may in turn lead to more intense wind events, like those responsible for the Maui fires, adding to other climate change-induced threats.

Fleishman explained the global trend of increasing hurricane intensity, partly because warmer air can hold more water. Rising sea levels worldwide are also leading to more intense flooding from storm surges during landfall.

Though climate change is not directly blamed for individual occurrences, the repercussions of extreme weather on societies are unquestionable.

The scope of these climate change-driven calamities is truly unprecedented, and they present multifaceted, interactive challenges that often result in disaster, said UBC’s Copes-Gerbitz.

Claire Rush is a correspondent for the Big Big News/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative, a non-profit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to cover underreported issues. You can follow her at @ClaireARush.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about fokus keyword: Maui’s wildfires

What factors are contributing to Maui’s devastating wildfires?

A combination of strong winds, low humidity, dry vegetation, and unusually strong trade winds, fueled by variations in air pressure and exacerbated by Hurricane Dora, are contributing to the wildfires. Climate change is also playing a role by increasing temperatures, drying out vegetation, and making stronger hurricanes more likely.

How does climate change influence the wildfires in Maui?

Climate change is leading to increased vegetation dryness due to higher temperatures, and it also makes stronger hurricanes more likely, which can fuel intense wind events. Invasive species like Guinea grass, influenced by climate change, can also create a tinderbox condition, making wildfires more prone to spreading.

How have experts reacted to the Maui fires?

Experts are pointing to a combination of factors, including meteorological conditions and the influence of climate change, as driving the wildfires. Some, like Hawaii’s state climatologist, were caught off guard by the impact of distant Hurricane Dora on the situation.

What are the consequences of the Maui fires?

The wildfires have killed at least six people and devastated a historic tourist town on the island of Maui. Environmental experts are using the situation to highlight the global risk of such disasters, emphasizing that nowhere is immune to the issue.

How are non-native species like Guinea grass contributing to the wildfires?

The wet season in Hawaii can cause non-native species like Guinea grass to grow rapidly, reaching up to 10 feet (3 meters) tall. When it dries out, it creates a tinderbox that’s ripe for wildfire, and changing weather conditions linked to climate change only exacerbate this problem.

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