Sadly, a changing climate made it too hot even for the Granite Mountain Hot Shots. Nineteen members of this elite group of firefighters, trained to work under the harshest and most dangerous conditions, sacrificed their lives for the common good in the wilderness fire near Prescott, Arizona. Wildfires burn far more acres than they have in the past. It’s a mix of factors, but in Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico temperatures can run upwards of 100 degrees for weeks at a time along with prolonged droughts. Climatologists only expect the pattern to continue and worsen over the next decades. Almost 40% of new homes in the West are built in the midst of fire country.
Perhaps a greater acknowledgement of climate change would halt this growth, especially if insurance companies stopped covering construction in high risk areas. Fire insurance in these fire zones is similar to flood insurance in flood zones and simply rewards the stupidity of building there in the first place. It’s a travesty that brave souls lose their lives protecting these properties.