2008 California wildfires

The timing of "fire season" in California is variable, depending on the amount of prior winter and spring precipitation, the frequency and severity of weather such as heat waves and wind events, and moisture content in vegetation. Northern California typically sees wildfire activity between late spring and early fall, peaking in the summer with hotter and drier conditions. Occasional cold frontal passages can bring wind and lightning. The timing of fire season in Southern California is similar, peaking between late spring and fall. The severity and duration of peak activity in either part of the state is modulated in part by weather events: downslope/offshore wind events can lead to critical fire weather, while onshore flow and Pacific weather systems can bring conditions that hamper wildfire growth.^[10][11]

Below is a list of all fires that exceeded 1,000 acres (400 ha) during the 2008 fire season.^[12] The list is taken from CAL FIRE's list of large fires.

The Summer 2008 fires were a concentrated outbreak of wildfires during the late spring and summer of 2008. Over 3,596 individual fires were burning at the height of the period, burning large portions of forests and chaparral in California, injuring at least 34 individuals and killing 32.^[5] The majority of the fires were started by lightning from dry thunderstorms on June 20,^[14] although some earlier fires ignited during mid-May. International aid from Greece, Cyprus, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, Mexico, and New Zealand helped fight the fires.^[15]

The first of the wildfires was the Big Horn Fire, which ignited on May 13.^[16] Three other minor wildfires ignited subsequently, but were extinguished by May 17. On May 20, the Avocado Fire ignited in Fresno County, only to be extinguished 2 days later.^[17] On May 22, 2008, the human-caused Summit Fire broke out in the Santa Cruz Mountains, which became the first major fire.^[18]

On July 5, 2008, California Governor Schwarzenegger commented that "I've been driving up and down the state of California going to all the various fires, and you can imagine, this state is very prepared for fire, but when you wake up one morning and have 500 fires across the state, it was a real shock to me... only to find the next morning there were 1,000 fires, and the next morning 1,400 fires, and then 1,700 fires igniting over 14 days."^[19]

The Gap Fire near Goleta in Santa Barbara County burned 8,357 acres (3,382 hectares).^[20] The fire was contained on July 29, after several weeks of activity.^[21]

By July 11, 2008, it was reported that a total of 793,483 acres (321,111 hectares) was burned, a total exceeding the initial estimate of 510,000 acres (210,000 hectares) burned by the October 2007 California wildfires.^[22] On July 12, 2008, the area burned reached 801,726 acres (324,447 hectares), exceeding the estimated 800,000 acres (320,000 hectares) burned by the 2003 California wildfires, making the Summer 2008 wildfires the greatest wildfire event in Californian history, in terms of burned area. On that date 20,274 personnel had been committed to fight the fires. Total resources included 467 hand crews, 1,503 engines, 423 water tenders, 291 bulldozers, 142 helicopters, 400 soldiers and numerous air tankers. The fire was responsible for the deaths of 23 individuals.^[23][24]

On July 25, a blaze sparked by target shooting broke out in Mariposa County, in the Sierra Nevada foothills of central California.^[25] By the following day, the Telegraph Fire had gone from 1,000 to 16,000 acres (400 to 6,470 hectares), and within days had destroyed 21 homes in the community of Midpines. Residents were evacuated from approximately 300 homes that were immediately threatened, with an additional 4,000 homes placed on standby for evacuation in Midpines, Greeley Hill, and Coulterville.^[26]

During August, wildfire activity began to diminish, although there were still hundreds of wildfires still burning. On August 29, wildfire activity had largely ended, although three more wildfires ignited after September 1,^[27] beginning with the Gladding Fire.^[28] On September 10, the Colony Fire was 100% contained, ending the last of the Summer 2008 California wildfires.^[29] The Summer 2008 wildfires burned a total of 1,162,197 acres (4,703.24 km²) between May 2008 and September 2008, comprising the vast majority of burned land by wildfires in California in 2008.^[30][19][31]

In total, the Summer 2008 wildfires burned a total of 1,161,197 acres (469,920 ha), which accounts for 84% of the total area burned during the 2008 wildfire season.^[32][19][31] In addition, the Summer 2008 fires cost over $92.38 million (2008 USD) to fight.^[6]

The Basin Complex Fire in the Ventana Wilderness became the third largest wildfire in California's history based on size (until it was surpassed in size by the 2013 Rim Fire), and also the second-costliest wildfire to extinguish in U.S. history.^{[citation needed]}

Air quality in northern and central California deteriorated as a result of smoke from the wildfires, especially in the Central Valley from Bakersfield in the southern San Joaquin Valley section to Redding in the northern Sacramento Valley section.^[41][42]

Spare the Air

Hazy conditions returned on July 7, along with high temperatures over 100 °F (38 °C) in the Central Valley. The heat and smoke combined forced public health officials and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to issue "Spare the Air" advisories and an emergency plan for heat waves, respectively.^[37][49] Air quality districts issued another Spare the Air day for July 8, July 9, and July 10, as calm wind conditions in Northern California failed to blow away the smoke from the wildfires.^[37][50] Smoky conditions continued into late August, when most of the wildfires were extinguished. The smoke from the fires finally began to disperse on September 10, after the last of the wildfires was fully contained.

The month of November saw a large number of fires, around 2,151, which began burning across Southern California on November 13, with 4 of them becoming major wildfires. At least 400 houses and 500 mobile homes were destroyed. According to USA Today, these wildfires combined with those from October 2007 and the Summer of 2008 were the worst group of wildfires that California had experienced in two decades.^[52]

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa told residents, "If you wait until the fire gets there you have waited too long, this fire can be on you in a moment's notice."^[53] California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and Orange Counties. Governor Schwarzenegger described the conditions contributing to the fires as a "perfect storm," including strong Santa Ana and sundowner winds, with gusts reaching 80 miles per hour (129 km/h), as well as high temperatures, low humidity, and dry conditions.^[54]

The most significant fires were the following:

• Montecito Tea Fire - a wildfire that started on November 13, 2008, in the wealthy community of Montecito, in Santa Barbara County, California, resulting in the destruction of 210 homes.^[55] Many celebrities have homes in the area of the Tea Fire, including Oprah Winfrey, Rob Lowe, and Steven Spielberg. The home of actor Christopher Lloyd was destroyed in the fire.^[56][57]
• Sayre Fire - a wildfire that started on November 13, 2008, in the Sylmar section of Los Angeles, California, resulting in the destruction of at least 630 structures, including 500 mobile homes, nine single-family homes, and eleven commercial buildings.^[58][59] The loss of more than 500 residences is the "worst loss of homes due to fire" ever in the City of Los Angeles, California, exceeding the loss of 484 residences in the 1961 Bel Air fire.^[59]
• Freeway Complex Fire^[60] - The combination of 2 wildfires, one of which was known as the Corona Fire by the news media, or Triangle Complex Fire, that started at approximately 9:00 a.m. PDT on November 15, 2008, and spread across the communities of Corona, Chino Hills, Yorba Linda, Anaheim Hills and Brea in Orange and Riverside County, California, and also spread to Diamond Bar in Los Angeles County.^[61] Later on November 15, the Landfill Fire ignited at 10:45 AM, and early on May 16, both wildfires merged into the Freeway Complex Fire. The Freeway Complex Fire burned about 30,305 acres (12,264 ha),^[60] injured 14 firefighters, and destroyed about 200 structures,^[62] and forced the evacuations of about 7,000 homes.^[63][64][65]

During the season, the National Interagency Fire Center reported 13 firefighter fatalities while battling wildfires.^[2] Nine were killed in a helicopter crash, while others died of a heart attack, a falling tree, and an entrapment. In all, 32 people were killed by the wildfires.^[5]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2008 wildfires in California.

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