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Articles on fires

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Market fires cause significant upheavals in the heavily informal Ghanaian economy. Wikimedia Commons

Accra’s market fires are devastating to informal traders - but they don’t trust or understand what they’re being told about managing risk

Fire risk communication strategies must not only be supported by formal institutions such as government agencies but also be rooted in and sensitive to each market’s socio-cultural dynamics.
Satellite image of a forest fire in July 2021 in northern Saskatchewan (Wapawekka Hills). The image covers an area of about 56 kilometres in width and is based on Copernicus Sentinel data. (Pierre Markuse), CC BY 2.0

Forest fires: North America’s boreal forests are burning a lot, but less than 150 years ago

North America’s boreal forests have been burning a lot, probably more and more over the past 60 years. Yet the long-term trend indicates that they are burning less than they were 150 years ago.
Pavel Koubek / Unión Europea / Flickr

These are the implications of the latest wave of mega-fires for the European Green Deal

In a new study, the authors discuss the role that poor forest management in protected areas, commercial plantations and fuel condition play in the spread of fire.
The majority of fire-related deaths that occurred in 2020 took place in people’s homes. Ty O'Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

10 fire safety tips to help keep you and your kids alive and safe

Last year, 3,500 Americans were killed by house fires. A former fire and explosion investigator has 10 tips to keep you and your children safe this holiday season.
It’s a … fire! Illustration by Anurag Papolu/The Conversation; photo by milorad kravic/iStock via Getty Images

Why gender reveals have spiraled out of control

Increasingly outlandish gender reveal parties align perfectly with the values of an economy that’s always scrolling for the next best thing.
If you’ve ever put wet wood on to a fire, you may have noticed it makes a lot more noise than dry wood. Shutterstock

Curious Kids: why does wood crackle in a fire?

Water and sap inside the wood make mini explosions as they turn into gas and burst out. That’s why damp wood makes the noisiest fires.
The Maria Fire billows above Santa Paula, California on Oct. 31. AP/Noah Berger

California is living America’s dystopian future

‘California is America fast-forward,’ writes one scholar. Does that mean that the dystopian infernos that have consumed parts of the state are simply a picture of what awaits the rest of America?
A fire rages through wetlands close to Cape Town in February 2017. EPA/Nic Bothma

What science tells us about fire hazards facing Cape Town and its surrounds

The danger of fires in the Cape region this season is partly dependent on how the Fynbos has been managed over the past few decades.
A burnt out property near Miena, Tasmania. The central Tasmanian house was fitted with roof sprinklers and surrounded by cleared land but succumbed to flying embers from bushfires. AAP Image/Tasmania Fire Service

How a bushfire can destroy a home

If you’re preparing to defend your home from fire, be aware of the vulnerable parts of your house.

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