LOS ANGELES — The sheer acreage consumed by fire in California in recent years is numbing: more than 2.5 million acres last year, and 4.3 million acres the year before that.
Already in 2022, before peak fire season has descended upon this drought-parched state, fire has burned nearly 17,000 acres.
Yet not all fires are equal. New research from UC Irvine shows that fires caused by human activity — be it arson, a neglected campfire, sparking electrical equipment or ill-conceived gender reveal parties — spread faster, burn hotter and destroy more trees than those caused by lightning strikes.
