84% of wildfires in the US are caused by humans, adding three months to the fire season. The annual cost of fighting these fires exceeds $2 billion. Most man-made fires occur on July 4th and are caused by burnt debris, arson, equipment use, campfires, and children.
As Smokey Bear says: “Only you can prevent wildfires”. But even with that caveat, 84 percent of all fires in the United States are still started by people. A 2017 University of Colorado study of 1.5 million fires that burned between 1992 and 2012 also found that humans added three months to the length of the national average fire season. “Thanks to the people, wildfire season lasts nearly year-round,” said study lead author Jennifer Balch. The annual cost of fighting all those fires in America has exceeded $2 billion dollars in recent years.
How and when fires start:
The remaining 16% of fires start naturally, usually after lightning strikes.
The most common day for man-made fires is July 7,762. The University of Colorado study counted 21 total fires on Independence Day during those XNUMX years.
Of human-caused fires with a known cause, burnt debris caused 29%, arson was responsible for 21%, equipment use was blamed for 11%, campfires were the source of 5% and children caused the remaining 5%.
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