And poor power-line maintenance by the main utility in Northern California, the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, has been blamed for some past wildfires. Fire seasons in general have grown longer and more destructive in recent decades, something scientists attribute in part to increased dryness caused by warming temperatures. Wildfires are a natural part of a forest’s life cycle and have been part of the state’s history since long before anyone called it California. The Bay Area is blanketed in smoke from the fires. Over the last few days, parts of the Bay Area have experienced extremely high levels of air pollution from the fires.

Source: New York Times October 11, 2017 18:05 UTC