skylinefirepest Loc: Southern Pines, N.C.

I would hope for some rain...but we are fixing to trade out another crew so it may be a while yet. This will be our fourth crew up there.

renn faire Loc: cailforna

Welcome to what California has been going thu the last seven yrs. It is a shame to seeing it happen back east! And our - new- pres. is saying the earth is not getting hotter?

Ron SS Loc: Silver Spring, MD

Not getting into global warming, the most significant reason for the large woodland fires is the long standing "Smoky the Bear" approach that all fires are bad. In our past, Native Indians in many regions used to do controlled burns. Our not doing so for decades allowed the buildup of combustibles on the ground that historically was burned off periodically. Periodic burns returned nutrients to the soil and cleared scrub growth for healthier forests. Now when there then is a fire, it has much more fuel and burns hotter, which damages live trees much more. Also, much harder to stop.

But yes, slightly warmer, and especially drier, chaotic weather, does contribute - to a significantly smaller degree - to woodland fires.