You may remember I was talking about the Texas wildfires a couple of weeks ago. Now, we have a new fire in town… and it is close to home.
When you think of the state of Virginia, you probably think of George Washington, or the fact that Virginia is near the capital. But did wildfires come to your mind? I didn’t think so.
The state of Virginia has around 700 hundred wildfires per year. On average most of them burn for about 106 acres. That pales in comparison to the 1 million wildfires in California. The Virginia wildfire might get to be the biggest it has been this season. 450 acres and four homes have been tragically burned so far. There are also 4 other smaller fires in Virginia, with smaller being a relative term. All of these other fires are over 100 acres! According to FoxWeather, the fires were caused by cold air moving from Canada drying out the vegetation, feeding a lot of fires with their favorite food.
In other weather news, just 600 miles up north Maine has experienced a bit of a snow bust. They have been experiencing less snow at higher elevations than is normally expected. Their winter has been dominated by El Niño, leading to less snow. February 2024 was the second least snowy month in Portland and Bangor, two cities in Maine.
For people who like to ski in Maine or just like the snow, this is probably a letdown. However, this also shows a greater issue which is how our climate is changing in El Niño.
This has been the recent weather update. Stay safe out there!
