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Winemaker Bob Valette lives in Mill Creek, where the devastation is overwhelming. The flames have consumed almost all the buildings in the area, located in the state of Washington. Valette says they had a pretty big farm, with animals, fruits, and grapes. Everything is gone now.
THE FARM IS GONE: Winemaker Bob Valette is one of many whose properties have been destroyed in the great fires ravaging the West Coast of the United States. Photo: Fredrik Græsvik
– The great fire destroyed the entire farm. The barn is gone. My grandfather’s house on the hill disappeared. The whole vineyard. The house where I was born. It’s all gone, he tells TV 2. He takes comfort in the fact that his restaurant escaped the flames.
Bigger and faster fires
At least 35 people have died in wildfires in the hardest hit states of California, Oregon and Washington. The fires are bigger and faster than ever.
BREATH ON THE GROUND: Fire crews have been fighting the flames for several weeks. Two million hectares, or 20,000 square kilometers, have been burned. The area corresponds to about half of Trøndelag, according to NTB. Photo: Fredrik Græsvik
– Now we have a lot of fires, says Valette, who is also a volunteer firefighter.
For nearly 50 years, he has spent more and more parts of the year helping put out fires. Both on land and as a tanker pilot. He says the fire season has lengthened and the fires have become more difficult to control.
– Part of the reason is climate change, but more importantly, we are not allowed to perform controlled burns as we used to do, he says.
With fires controlled, they cleared the forest, but it happened that the flames got out of control and then the firefighters took financial responsibility. Additionally, more and more people are settling in fire-prone areas.
“People are moving from the cities to the country to a greater extent,” says Valette.
Climate change
Climate change has also made everything much drier than before.
– We have made such important interventions on Mother Earth. Now is the time to help her, says Bob Valette.
BURNED: Many have lost everything they owned in the fires, which are the largest since authorities began documenting the extent of the 1980s. Photo: Fredrik Græsvik
More than 30,000 firefighters have been deployed to fight the flames. Forecasters have warned that a short break in cooler weather may end on Monday, when it will be hot and dry again, according to NTB.
