Raging California wildfires to be doused by rain next week

Firefighters battling the numerous deadly and destructive blazes across California may finally receive some relief from Mother Nature early next week in what may become one of the most costly weather and climate disasters in United States history.

Said Dr. Joel N. Myers, founder and president of AccuWeather, “This is a serious humanitarian as well as economic disaster for the state of California, possibly rivaling the negative impacts of the great earthquakes there. At this point, AccuWeather estimates that the total damage and economic impact of the California wildfires has already exceeded $80 billion, and will likely exceed $150 billion and possibly reach $200 billion by next week based on AccuWeather forecast conditions of strong winds and very little rain combined with very dry grounds and vegetation aggravated by lack of rain and strong parched winds. If these conditions and the resulting damage persist at least partially into December, this could well turn out to be one of the U.S.’ costliest weather and climate disasters, exceeding the damage caused by recent major hurricanes such as Katrina, Sandy and Harvey."

Though California is luckily forecasted to receive some needed rain, it won't be enough to end all of the blazes across the state. 

“While there is a chance for some meaningful rainfall next week, it is unlikely that we will see enough precipitation to end the fires across Southern California. There is a somewhat better chance for enough rainfall to diminish the fires in Northern California," Myers said.

Meanwhile, the decrease in winds will make fire behavior less erratic and prevent fires from spreading as rapidly as they have been over the past week, which should give residents facing future evacuations more time to reach safety.

In addition, moisture from the Pacific Ocean should be channeled back into the state early next week, and a storm system is forecast to bring wet weather back to parts of the state by the middle of next week.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/return-of-moisture-to-aid-firefighting-efforts-in-californias-wildfire-disaster-next-week/70006616