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What It's Like to Fight a Megafire
Article

What It's Like to Fight a Megafire

Wildfires have grown more extreme. So have the risks of combatting them

M.R. O'Connor
The New Yorker, 2021
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Eye Opening
  • Concrete Examples
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Writing for the New Yorker, M. R. O’Connor describes wildfires from a statistical perspective – number of acres burned, number of dollars spent, number of lives lost – and from a boots-on-the-ground firefighting perspective informed by her personal experiences as a wildfire fighter. Reporting from the front lines of crisis management, O’Connor posts a tragic warning about the increasing difficulty of fighting massive megafires and about fiery hazards facing planet Earth if climate change remains unchecked.

Take-Aways

  • Wildfires have grown progressively more severe and complex since the Nuttall fire in Arizona in 2004.
  • Wildfire fighters face physical risks in the field and mental health issues such as depression and PTSD.
  • Native Americans and environmental activists oppose the modern approach to fighting wildfires.

About the Author

Certified wildland firefighter M.R. O’Connor’s books include Resurrection Science and Wayfinding. Her next book, Ignition, is about fire ecology. 

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    R. L. 1 year ago
    nice, i live in the central valley in northern california and when fires start up in the sierras you can get a thick layer of smoke down here, that lasts awhile.