00:00Wildfire disasters that we often put down to one-off events are proving to be otherwise.
00:06A new study has found a 246% increase in the number of homes and structures destroyed by wildfires in
00:13the western U.S. in the past two decades, starting from 1999.
00:18The study confirms an increasing vulnerability to wildfire disasters, particularly for homes and buildings.
00:24And as a general statement, Science Alert reports, wildfires are becoming more destructive.
00:30In 10 years from 1999 to 2009, an average of 1.3 structures were destroyed for every four square miles
00:38burned.
00:38In the following decade, 2010 to 2020, this average more than doubled to 3.4.
00:45When looking into the cause of the current wildfire crisis in the western U.S., the site reports it is
00:51clear it has human fingerprints all over it.
00:54The increased damage is not simply due to more homes being built where fires historically burn or of burning more
01:01area.
01:01Human-caused climate change leaves vegetation more vulnerable to ignition and the consequences of accidental flammation are magnified.
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