GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — If you were to ask most people in West Michigan, the weather on Wednesday April 12, 2023 was just about perfect. If you were to ask a forest ranger or a firefighter though, they may give you a different answer.
That's because the fire danger on Wednesday was in the very high to extreme category across the region, with fire weather warnings and burn bans in place. This may come as a shock to some, since we've been talking about flooding for the past week, but the ingredients for the rapid spread of fires were all in place.
So what are these ingredients and how do they combine to create prime fire weather conditions? Let's take a look!
The Question:
How does weather impact the risk for fires?
The Why:
There are three main concerns when it comes to fire risk and the weather.
- Temperature
- Wind
- Humidity
So, let's look at how these factors play out for fire danger.
First, with wind. When gusts are high sparks, flames, and embers can easily be spread. In addition to this, strong winds can provide fires with additional oxygen, further fueling their development.
The main impact for temperatures and fires are tied humidity. If temperatures go on the rise, without an accompanying rise in air moisture, humidity will fall as the air picks up more capacity to hold moisture. This will push relative humidity levels lower and lower.
As humidity levels fall, this allows the air to start to pull moisture out of potential fuels for fires such as needles, leaves, sticks, small plants and other forest debris. This will leave these objects more able to catch fire and thus increase the overall fire danger.
In these kinds of conditions, a stay spark or flame could easily lead to a larger and more out of control fire. That's why the following tips are recommended during fire weather alerts.
Fire dangers caused by warm temperatures, high winds and low humidity are typically short-lived when compared to those caused by drought conditions. As a result, burn bans should be lifted as conditions change in the coming days.
Stay safe and stay weather aware West Michigan!
-- Meteorologist Michael Behrens
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Email me at: MBehrens@13OnYourSide.com
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