The Line fire had burned through more than 21,000 acres of Southern California when officials announced Monday morning that it was only 3 percent contained. Amid record temperatures, the blaze quickly ate through dry vegetation, injuring three firefighters and leading to evacuation orders for more than 6,000 people across San Bernardino County.
It’s just one of 67 large wildfires currently burning across more than two million acres of the country. While the end of summer has typically meant a slowdown of major wildfires, climate change has upended that seasonal pattern.
So what’s different about today’s wildfire weather?
