W. All over the world make of fires are destroying entire towns and regions the red circle. Was like a Freight Train coming to torture. Me. Make a foreigners are different they are beyond our control they are insatiable see the media what the precise since some pardon are clear to us im certain. Scientists and firefighters are taking up the challenge with new methods. Its really up to humans to figure out how to rebalance everything and we can do that its a race against time to save our habitats and our lives. In the Tropical Forest scientists have discovered yet another major impact caused by extreme wildfires. In Southeast Asia africa and the amazon but deforestation for the purpose of agriculture is responsible for an especially risky type of blaze. In indonesia this is had terrible consequences. For the government he is investigating the site of an illegal deforestation. Im betting that since 2000. 500 cases. Of the. Charcoal left over from the fire and that so. Were collecting them to prove there was indeed a fire and will analyze them to determine the impact of the fire. Indonesia produces 30 percent of the worlds palm oil as demand soars so do the fires. Here a Palm Oil Company may have used slash and burn to extend their plantation. Before planting the oil palms canals are dug to drain the moist soil. This lowers the water table by up to 30 centimeters leaving the peat dry and flammable. This burn patch is not yet another illegal far. Here and International Team of scientists is recreating the legal burns to study their consequences. We are in book one where we are going to simulate. Peat burns differently than trees for a reason. Beat. It doesnt burn with a flame smoldering. Deep inside the ground itself that is burning its not debilitation its actually just. Invisibly the fires burrow deep into the ground. Foreigners are the largest fires on earth that actually can burn away from view for very long time for weeks for months we have seen fires. In specific locations it creates holes which are a deep person goes into a hollow these appears from view. Is the most persistent type of fire on earth because shes. The most difficult to suppress. 3 times actually. By these right. Back in his lab in london guillermo is tackling an even more treacherous aspect of the peat fires. And this is our special beat that comes from. Our students from. Our places. To students think the. Year most team is the only Research Facility on the globe dedicated wholly to the study of peat fires. Nature restores carbon. Storage in the carbon for a long time. But it wasnt the grapes it actually stays in the water. The deeper you go. They all know the. It could be from a 100 years to a 1000 years thats a very end since oil that was captured a long time ago. When pete smolders generations of captured carbon are released into our atmosphere all at once. With us trees on biomass grow they take coming from the atmosphere and they release oxygen and then the fire is the opposite italy fire is the opposite of photosynthesis it actually releases the carbon into the atmosphere and it consumes the oxygen so the growing of a forest is the burning of a forest. And all the while the peat hardly looks like its burning at all. Only the high speed infrared camera captures the fire spreading outwards until all the bio mass has been consumed and the carbon released. Big emissions from upbeat fire are massive. 10. 00 to 100. 00 times larger than flaming fires. So the footprint is very very large is the elephant in the room off of carbon emissions. And this footprint is about to become even larger as the fires expand to new peak rich areas of the Tropical Forest in brazil and peru. And there is another carbon bomb ready to go off. Mega fires are also attacking the boreal forest rich in peat in canada alaska scandinavia the u. K. And even siberia. And the border region was found under. Reagents. The scary thing is speed limits cover only 3 percent of the land surface but theres still a lot of carbon maybe 25 percent of Global Carbon stocks so if the fires move into that you get fairly high you missions area. That is leaving to Climate Change is leaving is leading to places where the soil will be warmer and drier which then would lead to the more fires which will lead to more emissions so others electorates a positive Feedback Mechanism between more peak fires means more fires in the future. And if this increases Global Warming in general the number of wildfires will soar. Where will you go when your forests are no longer green theyre black and gone where will you go to breathe deep and slow. Every time there is a mega fire a Community Faces the challenge of recovering from an encounter with the beast. And several years after the fire Fort Mcmurray is physically being rebuilt but homes recover faster than people. Said lets take a moment to pray for each other lets take a moment to pray for everybody who is coming to our service. This morning we just take a moment of lucas has left his job as a firefighter and become a pastor today that we would do it for the sake of your kingdom and for your glory i think the rate of Alcohol Consumption and the people i work with just skyrocketed myself personally to you guys excited. As every day on the timeline after major disasters like this you see Domestic Violence increase you see suicides increase you see Substance Abuse increase all of those things we have seen in our city all of those things are on the rise. You know. Me lucas and fellow Church Members raced funds for psychological counseling for local people and firefighters. That was. The scientists tell us that for our force to recover and to look like it did before the fire is over 200 years for us as a people who experienced it i dont think it will ever leave us. Emotionally and psychologically would be something that is part of us now its part of our story. All over the world unless we find new solutions more major fires like the beast will take their tribute from our communities. We have tampered with nature and created this crisis now its up to us to find out how we can save our habitat and our lives before it is too late. Frank crumb is a great expert on force dynamics working in switzerland. He is determined to find out which will fire played in our forests before the age of mega fires after all fire has always been part of nature. To get started frank is headed to a former military bunker from world war 2. These hidden tunnels lead to the biggest collection of tree samples in europe. Some of the samples are 14000 years old. Trees have the nice ability to preserve different information in their rings they work as an autobiography for a tree and we can see different kind of signals we can see climatic signals we can see physical influences like damages and so on and we can also see environmental conditions. These are 2 samples from 2 different regions so this one here is from a very cold region and you can see very tiny rings the vegetation period is really short and the trees are growing very very slowly and here the tree rings much bigger because the conditions are better for the tree so they have the same diameter but this tree is about 25 years old and these trees about 300 years old. Here we can see a very narrow ring in 2003 as a consequence of a very dry year. Another tree ring bears witness to a rock fall. This tree from southern switzerland shows several scars fire scars here a fire scar here a fire a scar and here a fire scar that means the tree has survived several fire events one can really nicely see how the tree can over grow these kind of wounds that are produced by the fires. The scientists cross reference weather and climate data for an even more precise truly otto biography. Here we have an example of Ponderosa Pine from arizona with these fires scarse across the whole tree sample the last one is an 1874 than there was 150 years before so this tree has survived several fires that are recorded here this is conclusive evidence that during the revolution trees learn to live with moderate fires. Fire and the trays are adept at to each other and fires are part of the forest ecosystem. But now humans have brought destructive mega fires upon the forest and upset a delicate balance. Lets find out more about how the forest copes with a moderate fire and even benefits from it. 7 years ago this landscape burned by 55000 acres in it burned in a moderate severe already in this forest is bouncing back already youve got this mountain loop and here this is the nitrogen fixer and it helps this forest to rebound it fixes atmospheric 1990 gen and then it leaks it to the neighborhood after a moderate fire colorful little helpers fill up the forest and stimulate growth and trees like the launch pull pine just love a good fire many species are adapted to fire but this one here is dependent upon fire to complete its life cycle its got these really cool cones every one of these cones scales is held close by a drop of resin the heat of the fire melts that resin the cones open and then the seeds can fall to the ground. A few years later you can come back and see baby seedlings the lodgepole pine failing in under the blackened trees a new forest. Here wildfires are part of a cycle of renewal that. And it wouldnt have been this way if it had been a big hot mega fire you would have had the seedlings you wouldnt have had the source of plant life that developed here after the fire. Fires can help our forests bounce back with new vigor. We have been thinking about wildfire for a long time in the wrong way theres no way to keep it out of the ecosystem we have to invite it back in and dance with the bass. And. Dancing with the enemy might save our lives. But for that we need to overcome our fear of fire. And sonja lever close a canadian fire ecologist and firefighter has come to me to people who have a completely different relationship with fire. Im chief marvin here out here with the world very 1st nations and this is the territory of black berry 1st nations we have 3000 square kilometers of rock on territory here. Fire is important it plays a large role and always has been 1st nations people my dad was my. My teacher. He lived off the land he was a trapper and a hunter he taught always boys are always later. Explained the dangers of as not to be played with its important. That also far can be your your friend he says and your enemy at the same time now sonia teaches young firefighters how many indigenous tribes in both canada and the us knew all along how to use fire as a tool paradoxically it was the indian custom of frequent light burning that it produced and maintain much of the land the white settlers were then able to find. These open grasslands grew very attractive to the white settler. People thought this was a natural thing that happened and they were really really excited but little did they know they needed to continue applying fire to the land in order to maintain and to keep the patches on land. Fire as a tool was outlawed and the tradition largely forgotten only a few tribes like chief marvins after served and. We have a birds eye view having in that area are just to understand and work with our. Were willing to share their our knowledge and work with people. Sonja is updating the ancient tradition with modern science. First step preparation. In todays dense and overgrown forests a clear boundary needs to be set around the entire plot for the planned fire. Where we have black line we actually removed the fuel component of the fire triangle so when a fire approaches a black line then the fire no mo no longer can spread because the fuel has been removed from that area. So nice t. Also as a with line to strengthen the boundary. The great moment has come when weve completed our wet line around the outside edge weve also done black lining against the wet line and if the wind condition is right and we get wind from the west the fire will roll across here it will stop against our black line. This may look like a ping pong ball but actually its still the tassie implementing it which gets injected with glycol and make them highly flammable that happens for this machine that i have in the helicopter with. The. Socalled prescribed fires or controlled burns or the modern version of a traditional burn to maintain the patchwork in the forest. They are now making a comeback as an efficient Fire Prevention tool in canada and the us. And are even being introduced in europe. And. Helicopters make the process faster. And less risky for the firefighters and allow them to reach difficult terrain. And. The fire just scratches the surface and is done in an hour. We light fires because that is also part of firefighting prescribed fire keeps the land healthy. But there are areas where prescribed fires are a huge risk for instance right next to a community. John will brandt is one of hundreds of millions of people all over the world who live in the socalled wild land urban interface. These dream homes have become deadly fire traps because humans and the forest share the same space. We were well aware that one day we might be fighting a fire to try and save our home. The race is on to find Viable Solutions to survive extreme wildfire in these areas example california. In december 2017 a spark from a faulty powerline ignited the parched and overgrown landscape a frequent cause of fire where humans want to live in nature with all the amenities. Spurred on by ferocious winds the fire soon grew into a mega fire. They could look out the window at night as i went to bed and i could see the fire for a couple of nights in a row as a burned closer and closer. John and his partners own cloyd decided to stay and defend their home. What i remember the most of the fire was the sound. The roar the intense it was like a Freight Train coming towards your place here. Turn. Your encircled by fire on at least 3 sides i took one side of the house he took the other and during the entire fire we didnt know whether the other one had survived the fire. For we made it both wrong claud annoy we made it ok or says made it the donkey made it the cows made it. By studio did not make it. The fire found its way underneath the something in taters and all of my archives all record of my life as an artist from when i was a teenager up until 2005 i have lost. As the blaze continues to many more homes were lost to the flames. And the firefighters were powerless until the fire raced inland towards 2 fire breaks. One was a scar created by a big fire in 2010 which stumps the flames. Another was a fire break from the 1960 s. And. On this ridge what we can see is the fast back entry behind santa barbara. And as we look to the south side of this ridge we can see the dense communities of the south coast and you get the visual here of how much area there is to burn that can impact the communities. That often. Rob and his colleagues knew that this was their only chance. For a little back fire across this ridge line the grass was cleared off with mechanical equipment and we were able to burn along this ridge using our fire to take out the feel bad in between the main fire and this ridge line when the fire arrived at the fire break the fire crews were ready and waiting the fire reduces its intensity when it burns into the field break the flame links are smaller its more controllable and the firefighters have places to go if things get out of control. And are burning operation was successful we stopped the fire on this ridge line. But many interface areas do not have fire breaks to port. Text them from mega fires. We want our cake and want to be able to eat it too its nice to get away from busy urban centers but its unrealistic to expect that those places are going to be safe from natural process hes. Probably 2 thirds to 3 quarters of all new Housing Starts in the western us are being developed very flammable and dangerous circumstances. We have to come up with a more clever for polls all for how we live in these areas we cannot just keep sprawling outward because we cant keep you safe. Millions of people are at risk in zones that are becoming increasingly prone to fire. A scientist at the miss who firesign says lab has dedicated his career to finding out would really happens when a fire invades a community. Jack cohen said a whole experimental forest on far to prove that the heat of the flames is not sufficient to ignite a home. Of the view clear beauty of course but not ignited while fracture lightly framed by the cracked one. Now jacks research is the basis of an experiment which revealed what really causes these mission of a home its very intense while fire is producing lots of firebrands that then can cast down can shower down way ahead. Climate or miles ahead of this. In terms flame from. The point needles that have accumulated in the rain gutters the cotton fabric so proud of your furniture the wood in the debris that we mark on it there. Those are the things that make the house vulnerable to a nation. And once a house is on fire it produces its own members sitting off a Chain Reaction to. The wildfire actually doesnt spread through the community the burning things in the Community End up igniting the rest of the community. But does that mean that communities burning up during wildfires is inevitable. No. Its a whole mcnish and problem rather than a while for control problem. In Southern California communities are in a race against time to apply this discovery to millions of homes. In more recent years it seems like theres fires almost weve recovered from one and theres another one if its not here its close enough that we worry for friends or you know the citys nearby and the only part that hasnt burned is the part directly above me my mom is terrified that i live here she thinks i should leave because fires are so dangerous. I live in a condo its wood i know that its not landscape the way that it should be. 2. I know are you. Ready when i remember we are in a party that you so much for coming so we got a. Wildfire specialists like amber are inspecting homes one by one to try and make them less flammable. One thing that does concern me would be the mulched that you have around the side of your structure what moves doesnt it provides a receptive better a place where the ember can land in the night also one of the things that you can do is create a buffer such as rocks or sand dirt would be fine its cheap anything that just wont carry fire up against the side of your home. Look at all this keeley bark definitely a spot that embers like traveling under. The sea thats how theres an opening in this doorway that allows embers to get right inside your shirt sure this would be a weakness actually our neighbors over there have a great example by installing some metal mesh screening right behind those vents so i could just put something right behind it absolutely thats easy. In europe as well many of us enjoy living or spending our holidays near nature in the interface. Is specially in the mediterranean. But the closer we build to the forest the better the reach of the flames. Combine this with a unique recent drought and you have millions of people at risk. In portugal in 2017 for large wildfires killed 66 people fires have also been wreaking havoc in spain cyprus and the south of france. In 2018100 p. Lost their lives in the team in greece. Coauthor of a government report about the growing fire risk in greece is investigating what turned a peaceful holiday destination into a fire trap. Its difficult for unprepared untrained people to make a decision many people think ok with it its just putting many of the drive to get to the main street but think we need to drive on the issues not the wind hundreds of people on the same metals 3 when there is. A 1st person left is caught in the middle of the street in the ground or the scene. Of the people were stuck envious is exactly what kept them. Stuck in the line and most of them both. And the people who tried to leave on foot been met with this type of world which would not allow them to pass through. And. 26 people perished here just a few meters from the sea. Here we hear one of the exits one of the buses is full of the sea and you can see how metal it is. People in trying to fight. And there is no sign even now it would be very easy. There was no official strategy in place even for those who escaped to the beach. Some people tried to seem. They were picked up by the waves and they can. See some somewhat able to see. By boats. In the sea. So why is matty such a labyrinth. There was not any strict would been planning and then the strict building codes of the house there were many houses built in the field that was not appropriate for such ca. Interface. Places. But even after the fire construction continues unchecked. We need to be snowdens. Actions and that needs to be some information passed on to the people. I confine myself to a man fire so i need to have the basic knowledge not to fear but to be prepared in the same way that in greece we have what to do in case of an earthquake and all these thinks. We need to take wild far just as seriously as other major catastrophes if we want our families to be safe in these areas. With. Technology on its own is powerless against a mega fire. But with new Prevention Strategies to make our landscapes less flammable our firefighters have a chance. At this unique training site in must say fire crews from the north of france and Northern Europe and even china and russia are getting ready for the challenge. As im going. On this is just. Bizarre just on the whole summers this. One professor and if you know this all the best part of it you know it will cost if were usually if you go from. Los angeles into to toss better put to music spot yes on film to shake on film to who sits oscars a bell means of it in. The french firefighters form part of a new European Union network. Where crews from 34. 00 countries have joined forces to extinguish fires all over europe sharing resources and cost. Example sweden in 2080. Coordination with other than the states and of the europe and they were able to come with planes. Search us who bought. From so as you tell me but also some neighboring countries from sweden as. A supporter germany and also. This european collaboration provides a glimpse of the future of firefighting that will be the big of. A 6 interest shown in full set up to. Be your mob or to skid row my children who are Strong Technology each set up to me. Know to sit in on a trial. That im not sure hope to force of what. I live on or you know our fire adapted ecosystem so fire is going to be here no matter what. You learn to live with it you know you look at the Weather Forecast you know its going to rain saturday so you dont plan to be outside saturday so same thing with smoke you know if theres a big fire coming in and its just like any other kind of weather pattern they have to plan around. You dont want to think about it because its so scary if you do but you have to be prepared for it every day. After the last few fires and packing and unpacking i finally decided to keep my most important things in a box ready to go its got things like important papers some family treasures memories some photos and everything is close to my front door so if nothing else could get grabbed it would be easy to get that box and get out of the house. The pyro scene the age of fire is here to stay whether we like it or not. And time is running. Out. We are a mill of an. Experiment on earth we have no other planet to go to this is the only place we can live what will the future hold how do we want our fire and smoke how do you want it you want it big and hot and unbridled and belching smoke we cant be just moving back chairs on a sinking ship. We have about 20 years to get the needed work done weve got the technological tools weve got the science we know what it takes we know how these forests work if we dont take any action today certainly its kicking the can down the road for future generations. Can we find a way to live with far before it is to live. In a Perfect World we would put out our launchers in our backyards and we would watch it burn across the hillside and we would feel. That we could be worth it and we would have felt threatened by it. To survive the age of mega fires we need to become once again a fire adapted species. And make peace with both far and the forest. Can we learn to tame the beast and live to tell the tale. Brave decision against violence to. Go your 1000000 off quit his job after the bellary see an election. Like many of his colleagues to coerce the brutal actions taken against demonstrators. But what will this. For him and his family. Only. 90 minutes w a i. The are watching of old age of 3 and all in the war the poorest of the poorer and poorer countries started reading their 2 kids and they are demanding good quality education for their children good call put it more and also realize that if they have to have good quality products some good quality consumers their needs were quality and Skilled Workforce im very confident that includes holds on 50 more child or nor i very thrilled a man illiterate that is the fundamental human right that theres the divine guard which the nature of the board has given to us and goals rooted Almost Legendary that i had to learn who i was clutching over the right to freedom against nature of the other guest blog. This is news live from our latest fears that russias most prominent opposition figure has been poisoned a spokeswoman for alexina bonnie says he is in a coma at a siberian hospital after drinking. The flight he was on had to make an Emergency Landing when he started feeling sick also coming up