There are wildfires all around. We have fires to the south and fires to the north. Alaska has had about two million acres burned so far this year, and we are not to the end of it. My big fire pump is out and operating almost daily, not to fight fires thankfully, but we are watering everything we can to keep the danger as low as we can. The temperatures are supposed to moderate on Tuesday, but no rain for at least a week. This is very unusual for our state. According to state forestry, about 100,000 acres are burning daily currently every day.
@Ken Anderson Always wondered about that. Then, relying on firewood for our sole heat source in Missouri, I finally settled on an answer: ever try to burn "green" oak, hickory, maple, or nearly any other non-pine forest growth? Pine trees contain volatiles like "turpentine" which burn nearly as ferociously as gasoline. I imagine Alaska is treed with immense stands of pine. Here in the Desert, what few "trees" exist are found in low-lying areas such as washes and arroyos, which accumulate run-off from the infrequent rains. On flat ground, the numerous scrubby-looking Desert plants such as Creosote and Mallow will burn like tinder. Frank
When I was in Ekuk, I awoke early one morning to find that the air had a slight yellow haze to it. I asked a native about it and he told me that there was an underground fire or rather peat moss fire. I was also told that some underground fires could last for months or even a couple of years. Now, I do realize that the probability that such fires are the culprits which start the above ground fires but what I learned in N. Idaho makes me a little suspicious. Very often when trees are felled on someone’s property, they will burn the stump which in turn burns the roots which are completely underground. Sometimes there is an intertwining between tree roots and the roots of a tree standing a hundred feet or so away will catch and then eventually set the tree itself on fire and possibly one which is surrounded by other trees. I don’t know if it has anything remotely to do with the problem but it’s a thought.
@Bobby Cole Maybe this is a totally stupid question, but could the earthquakes due to earth's core heating have anything to do with underground type fires in Alaska since they are also on fault lines?
@Bess Barber A coal mine in PA has been burning underground for nearly 60 years! "The Centralia mine fire is a coal seam fire that has been burning underneath the borough of Centralia, Pennsylvania, United States, since at least May 27, 1962. The fire is suspected to be from deliberate burning of trash in a former strip mine, igniting a coal seam. The fire is burning in underground coal mines at depths of up to 300 feet (90 m) over an 8-mile (13 km) stretch of 3,700 acres (15 km2).[1]At its current rate, it could continue to burn for over 250 years." See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centralia_mine_fire Even more spectacular, the "Door to Hell": "The Darvaza gas crater is a natural gas field collapsed into an underground cavern located in Derweze, Turkmenistan. Geologists intentionally set it on fire to prevent the spread of methane gas, and it is thought to have been burning continuously since 1971. The gas crater has a total area of 5,350 m2. Its diameter is 69 m (226 ft), and its depth is 30 m (98 ft). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darvaza_gas_crater
This one has been burning since 1915!! The Laurel Run mine fire is an underground mine firenear the communities of Laurel Run and Georgetown, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States.
I've seen footage from the CA wildfires - terrifying. Do you have an escape route and know when you would need to leave?
We have spruce, not pine, but it is the same effect. Black spruce is the source and fuel of most of our fires. The dominant hardwood is birch, and it doesn't burn green nearly as well.
There is only one road into our place. We had to evacuate years ago, and we moved the livestock and family members out at the first sign of danger, but one son and I stayed in the house as long as we could to clean things up, set sprinklers, and prevent looting. We didn't leave until we were forced to do so with the fire trucks coming into our driveway. We ahve water at our back, though, so there was always getting under the canoe in the lake and work away from the fire as best we could.
Peat fires are a problem in the Bush, as they travel underground and smoulder for long periods as you said. They then pop to the surface and cause unexpected flare ups.
My goodness, 100,000 acres every day !!!! That's huge, I knew Alaska was big, but if it keeps on going at that rate, there'll be nothing left!. how scary!!..what with Earthquakes and all those wildfires I think I'll give any idea of visiting a miss!! Spain has a problem with wildfires too...!!!
Early in the summer is a good time, and late in the fall (before snow) is good,too, if you like rain. One of my favorite times is late March--no tourist but snow. Temps are moderate.