Deadly weather extremes are wreaking havoc in the western U.S. where dozens of major wildfires are burning due to hot, dry conditions. Three firefighters have died in a blaze.
In Utah, the incredibly fast-moving Cottonwood wildfire has expanded to 144 square miles, the largest fire in the country.
Public Information Officer Alyssa Mason said of the fire’s speed, “The high estimate yesterday was 3,000 feet per minute and then the low estimate was 100 feet per minute.”
In Beaver, Utah, a ring camera captured the moment flying embers and flames surrounded cabins and trees. Cabin owner Marc Leduc watched it from the safety of his home.
“Within seconds, completely surrounding kind of the trees around my cabin. I’ve never seen anything like that. I didn’t know fire could do that.”
Three firefighters died battling a fire at the Utah-Colorado border after being trapped by flames. First responders honored them with a procession in Grand Junction, Colorado.
Spokesperson Paige Pagucco said, “It’s the ultimate sacrifice, and we never like to hear when that happens. We take a step back, and we reassess how we’re doing things.”
It’s a completely different weather story in Kentucky and Indiana, where flash flooding is blamed for at least four deaths.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency following heavy rains and flash floods. “We have been hit really hard. Wiping out roads and bridges and sadly, even taking a handful of lives,” he said.
In a video posted to social media, firefighters pulled a driver to safety before the car floated away in the strong current.
In Bullitt County near Louisville, officials urged some residents to evacuate after the heavy rains caused a dam to fail.
Jon Waters, Director of Bullitt County Emergency Management, said, “People didn’t want to vacate their homes. Which, I know people want to stay home. It’s your stuff. It’s your loved ones. But it’s so dangerous when you stay home when all the flood waters are rising.”
Meanwhile, a dangerous heat wave is coming for the eastern half of the country this week, with triple-digit temps expected from the Midwest to the East Coast.
In Europe, where temperatures are topping 105 in some places, more than 1,300 deaths have been linked to the excess heat.
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