Extreme Santa Ana winds whipped flames across Los Angeles County last week, with gusts catapulting embers across tinder-dry landscapes spreading devastating wildfires across the region. The Palisades and Eaton fires have caused at least 25 deaths, as of Tuesday, and destroyed over 12,000 structures. One factor that drove the destructive blazes began years earlier. California has some of the U.S.’s most variable precipitation, with increasingly dramatic swings between wet and dry periods, also known as “hydroclimate whiplash.” 

Other wildfire and weather articles:

• Weather West blog: Hydroclimate volatility on a warming Earth
• The Hill: LA fires’ heat, intensity driven by planet-warming pollution: Study
• Associated Press: LA fires: Red flag warnings issued as millions in Southern California on edge
• The Washington Post: Trump’s pick for energy secretary rejects linking climate change and wildfires