Japan distributes 2,000 firefighters to fight the worst forest flames in decades Climate crisis news
About 4,600 residents remain under evacuation tips as the fire rages in the North Iwate region, killing at least one person last week.
More than 2,000 firefighters, supported by military helicopters, are struggling of the largest Japanese forest fire in three decades, as the flames are burning thousands of hectares of land daily.
Officials said on Monday that about 4,600 residents remained under the evacuation consultation while the fire raged in the northern Iwate region, killing at least one person last week.
The fire, which broke out near the town of Ounato, follows record low rain in the area and last year’s warmest summer on a record across Japan, as climate change increases temperatures around the world.
“Although it is inevitable that the fire will expand to some extent, we will take all possible measures to ensure that it will not affect the homes of people,” Prime Minister Shiger Ishiba in Parliament said.
The fire was consumed by approximately 5,200 acres (2,100 acres) of the country since it started on Thursday, the Fire Management Agency and Disaster (FDMA) said on Monday.
“We are still examining the size of the affected area, but the largest of the 1992 fires in Kushir,” FDMA Hokkaido spokesman for the AFP news agency told Saturday.
Firefighters from 14 Japanese regions, including Tokyo units, fought with a flame and 16 helicopters – including the army – were trying to extinguish the flames.
It is estimated that 84 buildings were damaged by Sunday, although details were still assessed, FDMA said.
About 2,000 people left the area to stay with friends or relatives, while more than 1,200 evacuated shelters are according to officials.
The shootings from the NHK NHK NHK showed an orange flame near the buildings and white smoke that embarks on the air.
Although the number of wild fires in Japan decreased since the 1970s, according to government data, the country continued to record about 1,300 such incidents in 2023, concentrated in the period from February to April when the air dried and the winds were stronger.
Outunato saw only 2.5 mm (0.1 inches) of rain in February – overthrowing the previous record of 4.4 mm in 1967 and below the usual average of 41 mm.
Some types of extreme times have a well -established relationship with climate change, such as heat waves or heavy rainfall. Other phenomena such as droughts, snowstorms, tropical storms and forest fires can be due to a combination of complex factors.
