In recent decades 1998 has been season of record for the Southeast - looks like it's getting a challenger. The year was also noteworthy for the smoke that poured across the southern US from Mexico's 'temporada catastrofica' which led to major reforms in policy and programs.
Cooking, adaptations to smoke, now burns - fire has been in the human genome for a long, long time
The Gila was an early adopter of the policy reforms of 1978 and one of the success stories in restoring fire. Was it enough? The forest is being stressed by near-millennial drought and seems to be holding.
Tall Timbers was on the national register - a loss all around. I had the privilege of serving on the board for 3 years. Not just a place but an exemplar of fire and land management.
wildfiretoday.com/fire-burns-h...
If we all start thinking response is politicized (and I admit it sure looks like we are losing to the siege forces), if you demand that responders follow a party, it can do nothing but make disasters worse, response less effective, & recovery less equitable.
Hands off Smokey. Free the Bear! 11/11