Drought

Supply chain kinks thwarting wildfire crews

Crew at a portion of the Caldor fire in eastern California.

Supply chain issues that have been a fact of life this year for shippers and carriers are also confounding the efforts of thousands of firefighting crews stuck in the middle of an extreme wildfire season.

They are struggling to keep people, equipment and other resources moving to contain the blazes.

Serious long-term drought, along with triple-digit heat waves and very low humidity this summer, have made their jobs more challenging than usual, as have wind-driven blazes like the Caldor fire in...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/supply-chain-kinks-thwarting-wildfire-crews

Hours-of-service relief part of response to historic Minnesota drought

Flatbed truck carrying large bales of hay.

Minnesota farmers have been slapped in the face by Mother Nature this year.

A major drought has dried up hay crops, leaving many farmers and cattle ranchers in the dust and prompting a multipronged government response that relies in part on relaxing hours-of-service regulations on truck drivers.

‘I’ve never seen it like this’

“We really had a one-two punch this summer,” Minnesota Commissioner of Agriculture Thom Petersen told FreightWaves. “It wasn’t just that we didn’t get rain, it was that we...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/hours-of-service-relief-part-of-response-to-historic-minnesota-drought

Large Western wildfires continue charring millions of acres

Firefighter at the Bootleg fire in southern Oregon.

Dozens of large wildfires are still scorching millions of acres of land in the U.S., most of them in the West.

#DixieFire actively burning along Hwy 89 this evening. pic.twitter.com/zCPlwNVThe

— 564FIRE (@564FIREPhoto) July 25, 2021

Several large fires in the Northwest, northern Rockies and Northern California burned actively over the weekend, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The Dixie fire in Northern California reported extreme fire behavior as it expanded by nearly...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/large-western-wildfires-continue-charring-millions-of-acres

Fire weather danger still scorching Southwest

Smoke from wildfires across the sky.

The threat for wildfires keeps blazing across the Southwest as the ground remains parched.

Much of the region, including the Mojave Desert, has been under “extreme” or “exceptional” drought for several months. These are the worst two categories issued by the U.S. Drought Monitor, and fires of different sizes continue to burn.

Many of the fires have been contained. But the drought, combined with very dry air and gusty winds, will make it easy for new fires to start over the next few days. Also,...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/fire-weather-danger-still-scorching-southwest

Snowy week ahead for Rockies truckers

Tractor-trailers on a snowy Colorado highway.

Old Man Winter will hang around the Rockies this week, dumping heavy snow in some spots. Winds will be whipping, too, making travel a bit dicey for drivers who are deadheading (hauling empty trailers) or carrying light loads.

The worst conditions will likely happen Tuesday and Wednesday, mainly from west of Denver in Colorado to southern Idaho, western Wyoming, southern Montana and eastern Nevada. Total snow amounts will depend on exact location and elevation, but some areas could see up to 12...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/snowy-week-ahead-for-rockies-truckers

High risk of wildfires in High Plains

Raging wildfire.

Drivers may run into areas of smoke and low visibility in the Plains this weekend as the risk of more wildfires remains elevated.

East and westbound lanes of I-94 are temporarily closed from Beach to Belfield due to a grass fire until further notice. There is no detour in place, motorists must use alternate routes.

For information on road conditions, visit the ND Roads map at https://t.co/EXHjjzmsoB

— NDDOT (@NorthDakotaDOT) April 1, 2021

From Montana and the Dakotas southward to Oklahoma,...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/high-risk-of-wildfires-in-high-plains

Part of I-70 remains closed due to Colorado wildfires

Fire trucks on highway near the Grizzly Creek wildfire in Colorado.

Extremely dry conditions are helping fuel two large fires across western Colorado, forcing the state Department of Transportation to close a section of Interstate 70.

SONAR Critical Events: Grizzly Creek Fire, Thursday, August 13, 2020

On Tuesday, all lanes in both directions were shut down between Glenwood Springs and Gypsum (mile markers 116 to 140), and the road remains closed until further notice. 

The Grizzly Creek fire near Glenwood Junction, which started Monday, covered about 6,200 acres...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/part-of-i-70-remains-closed-due-to-colorado-wildfires

Wildfires still burning in drought-stricken Florida Panhandle

Wildfire burning in Walton County, Florida on May 6, 2019.

Multiple wildfires broke out across parts of Florida yesterday! The #FiveMileSwampFire has burned at least 2,000 acres in NW Florida as of yesterday evening.

Permission: @FDACS@WeatherBug – download the app for the latest alerts!#FLwx #Florida #5MileSwampFire pic.twitter.com/9ArV6Uj6vz

— Live Storm Chasers (@Livestormchaser) May 7, 2020

Wildfires in at least three different parts of the Florida Panhandle continued burning through the night Wednesday into Thursday morning, one of them...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/wildfires-still-burning-in-drought-stricken-florida-panhandle

Panama Canal Drought! Ships Asked to Lighten Up Cargo

  • Ships carrying cargo through the Panama Canal asked to lighten their loads after a recent drought depleted the basin’s water levels.
  • The drought is believed to be related to El Nino, a weather phenomenon where warm ocean temperatures in the Pacific lead to drier than usual conditions in some areas.
  • Panama’s Canal Authority said this year marked “the driest dry season in the history we’ve had of the canal”.

The country’s Canal Authority said this year has been the “driest dry season“ in the...

http://mfame.guru/panama-canal-droughtships-asked-to-lighten-up-cargo/

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