By: Ruihao Rick Shan

San Jose, California- A record-breaking heatwave along with strong winds and an increase in lightning strikes have posed a critical fire risk in the Pacific Northwest on Sunday.

What is Causing the Fires

According to Jessica Neujhar from the Oregon Department of Forestry, a majority of this season’s wildfires were caused by humans. The most common cause is people burning debris around their houses which can lead to embers escaping and causing fires in other areas.

Another cause of these fires is lightning. Nearly 1000 lightning strikes hit Oregon causing 17 large wildfires. Earlier this month, a historic heatwave had dried up the state. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s storm prediction center forecasts a possible outbreak of dry lightning in critical fire weather areas. Dry lightning combined with hot and dry conditions is a dangerous condition to spark new fires.

Total Acres Burned by Fire

According to the State of Oregon Fire and Hotspots Dashboard, 123 active wildfires have burned over 621,258 acres of land.

The largest wildfire is the Durke wildfire in Baker County. It has burned 145,557 acres of land and none of the wildfire has been contained by firefighters. Another large fire is the Cow Valley Fire located in Malheur County. It has burned 133,490 acres but firefighters have managed to contain 78% of the blaze.

Meanwhile, nearly 100 smaller fires have sprouted up all across Oregon. Most of these fires have been contained.

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