Abstract
The 2021 fire season in Greece was the worst of the past 13 years, resulting in more than 130,000 ha of burnt area, with about 70% consumed by five wildfires that ignited and spread in early August. Common to these wildfires was the occurrence of violent pyroconvection. This work presents a meteorological analysis of this outbreak of extreme pyroconvective wildfires. Our analysis shows that dry and warm antecedent weather preconditioned fuels in the fire-affected areas, creating a fire environment that alone could effectively support intense wildfire activity. Analysis of surface conditions revealed that the ignition and the most active spread of all wildfires coincided with the most adverse fire weather since the beginning of the fire season. Further, the atmospheric environment was conducive to violent pyroconvection, as atmospheric instability gradually increased amid the breakdown of an upper-air ridge ahead of an approaching long-wave trough. In summary, we highlight that the severity and extent of the 2021 Greek wildfires were not surprising considering the fire weather potential for the period when they ignited. Continuous monitoring of the large- and local-scale conditions that promote extreme fire behavior is imperative for improving Greece’s capacity for managing extreme wildfires.
Highlights
The wildfires that burnt across Greece in early August 2021 were unprecedented in extent, intensity, and impacts
The present study focuses on five pyroconvective wildfires that affected southern Greece (Figure 1) between 3 and 10 August 2021
To assess environmental conditions before and during the examined wildfires, we retrieved in situ meteorological observations from the network of automatic weather stations (AWSs) operated by the National Observatory of Athens (NOA) in Greece since 2007 [26]
Summary
The wildfires that burnt across Greece in early August 2021 were unprecedented in extent, intensity, and impacts. They are associated with strong convective updrafts and downdrafts that result in unpredictable changes in surface winds [6], pyrogenic lightning [7], and rapid fire growth due to increased ember generation and long-range spotting [8] Besides their impact on fire behavior, pyroCus/Cbs can significantly affect the vertical transport of smoke, atmospheric chemistry, and cloud microphysics. ITfihceaynatlrye masosoisctiaattehdigwhiethr astlrtoitnugdecos,nwvehcetriveethuepdcoranfdtsenansadtidoonwtankdersafptslatchea,ttroesmualtininunpredictable changes in surface winds [6], pyrogenic lightning [7], and rapid fire growth due to increased ember generation and long-range spotting [8] This is a important issue for countries that, like Greece, lack an open science-based early warning system of wildfire danger
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