Global warming, climate change, all these things are just a dream come true for politicians. I deal with evidence and not with frightening computer models because the seeker after truth does not put his faith in any consensus. The road to the truth is long and hard, but this is the road we must follow. People who describe the unprecedented comfort and ease of modern life as a climate disaster, in my opinion have no idea what a real problem is.
A week after fire broke out on the Morning Midas, the salvage crew have finally reached the boat. The bulk car carrier was abandoned last Tuesday and has been adrift 300 miles south of Alaska. The ship only had 68 full EVs on board, with 681 hybrid cars, among a total load of 3,000 cars. But apparently that was quite enough to turn it into a 47,000 ton slow burning barbecue.
The latest update shows the fires still burning and (wow) extensive damage to the hull.
A week after fire broke out on the Morning Midas, the salvage crew have finally reached the boat. The bulk car carrier was abandoned last Tuesday and has been adrift 300 miles south of Alaska. The ship only had 68 full EVs on board, with 681 hybrid cars, among a total load of 3,000 cars. But apparently that was quite enough to turn it into a 47,000 ton slow burning barbecue.
But alas, a week later, the photos show the slow burn has consumed much of the ship. Even though the hull appears intact and the ship is not listing, the damage is extensive. How much of the cargo on board would have survived a week of smoke and heat?
The Morning Midas is a bulk carrier which was headed from China to Mexico. The fire broke out last Tuesday Alaskan time, so it is said, from the deck where the electric cars were. After the crew sealed the doors and unleashed the carbon dioxide bottles, there wasn’t much else they could do. All 22 sailors abandoned ship and were rescued by a Costco carrier.
The 46,800-ton ship itself was built in 2006 and is worth about $14 million. With 3,000 new cars at $30,000 each that would be a loss of $90 million. If the ship and cargo is lost, as happened to the Felicity Ace in 2022, the total loss could be around $100 million.
Without any realistic way to put out these fires, perhaps EV’s will have to be parked on the top deck next to an ejector hatch, with a catapault? It would save so much money if they can be dumped at sea at the first sign of smoke?
Sal Mercogliano, a specialist on shipping news points out that on these ships, the cars are packed bumper to bumper and tied down with straps over the wheels. As the fire burns through the straps, he says the cars can start to roll on the seas. (His youtube on this is here).
He also points out the crew have to get off early in a situation like this. They are 10 to 12 decks high above the water, or 100 – 120 feet above water. The lifeboats must be lowered into the water, and if they wait too long, they might be unable to do that. At that point they are left jumping 30-40 meters into the cold Pacific Ocean.
What the ship looked like last week as the fires started.
New solar panels probably caused a fire that has severely damaged a £1.5 million home.
Couple in their 30s installed the panels on their five-bedroom house a month before the fire, neighbours say.
New solar panels probably caused a fire that has severely damaged a £1.5 million home.
The five-bedroom home in Ferndown, Dorset, was engulfed in 20ft flames on Monday afternoon when the panels ignited. The Telegraph has the story.
Firemen said the roof and “entire first floor” of the detached house were destroyed in the blaze. The owners were not hurt.
Neighbours said the panels had only been fitted to the property, which is believed to be owned by a couple in their 30s, in April.
Peter Webb, a 75-year-old neighbour, said he was in his garden when the “terrifying” fire started.
“My wife [was] gardening and I suddenly noticed this burning smell and said, ‘What on earth is that?’” said Mr Webb, a retired special needs specialist. “I looked up and saw 20ft high flames shooting from the back of the house and called 999.
“They were tackling the fire from our driveway and there were exploding bangs like an air raid. It was terrifying. Thankfully they managed to stop it spreading to our house.”
Another neighbour, who was not named, said “most of the house has gone”.
Yet another one!
The fire was caused by a fault in one of the battery cells within a single containerised battery unit, leading to ignition. Fire crews have been on-site since the call came in, working to prevent the fire from spreading and ensuring the situation remains safe.
Firefighters are currently responding to a fire at a battery energy storage site (BESS), currently under construction in East Tilbury.
The site consists of multiple containers housing battery units.
The fire was caused by a fault in one of the battery cells within a single containerised battery unit, leading to ignition. Fire crews have been on-site since the call came in, working to prevent the fire from spreading and ensuring the situation remains safe.
Area Manager Dan Partridge said: “Our firefighters have worked quickly and effectively alongside the site owners and Thurrock Council to manage this fire safely. Through close monitoring and a carefully controlled response, we have contained the fire and made sure there is no risk to the wider community.”
Firefighters have been using specialist equipment, including thermal imaging cameras and drones, to monitor temperatures and manage the fire in a controlled manner. Water has been used to prevent heat transfer, and crews continue to oversee the situation.
Thanks to the swift response and collaborative efforts, the fire is under control. Crews are expected to remain on-site for the rest of the day to make sure the area is completely safe.
An investigation into the cause of the fire will take place once it has been fully extinguished and conditions allow.
All flights at Luton Airport have been suspended until the afternoon after a huge fire ripped through a terminal car park.
Flights have been halted until 15:00 BST after the fire at the multi-storey caused the building to suffer a “significant structural collapse”.
About 1,500 vehicles may have been in the car park and subsequently damaged, the fire service said.
Four firefighters and an airport staff member were taken to hospital.
They had been suffering from the effects of breathing in smoke. Another patient was treated at the scene.
The airport said its priority was to support emergency services and the safety of passengers and staff, which is why flights had been suspended.
The fire, believed to have been accidental, would have started in a vehicle that arrived at about the time the fire started, shortly before 21:00 BST, the fire service said.
Footage shared online shows huge flames and billowing smoke from the top level of the car park after the fire broke out shortly before 21:00 on Tuesday.
Bedfordshire Police has asked people not to travel to the area.
Earlier, the ambulance service said a member of the public and six firefighters had suffered smoke inhalation.
Vehicle alarms and loud explosions were heard, with one witness describing the speed at which the blaze had torn through the upper floor of the car park as “incredible”.
We’ll have to wait for the facts to emerge in due course to find out what caused the fire in the first place.
But the explosions reported, the collapse of the floor and the speed at which the fire spread certainly raise the suspicion that one or more EVs were involved.
Even if not, we do know that a car park full of EVs, which will be the case in a few short years time, would be lethal in the event of a fire.
Just imagine an underground car park beneath a block of flats.
Until the full facts emerge, EVs should be banned immediately from all multi-storey car parks.
The Maui fire would have devastated Lahaina in a colder or warmer climate. It would have devastated Lahaina in high or low CO2 concentrations. The key is managing the dead grasses that become flammable in just hours. Climate change was irrelevant. Declaring a climate emergency to reduce fossil fuels is a useless remedy that only misdirects funds that will be needed to better manage a fire-prone landscape.
Figure 1 – Created by Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization
The Maui fire would have devastated Lahaina in a colder or warmer climate. It would have devastated Lahaina in high or low CO2 concentrations. The key is managing the dead grasses that become flammable in just hours. Climate change was irrelevant. Declaring a climate emergency to reduce fossil fuels is a useless remedy that only misdirects funds that will be needed to better manage a fire-prone landscape.
The massive destruction and loss of life in Lahaina, Hawaii due to the recent wildfire has evoked tremendous compassion and concern from around the world for the people of Lahaina. I can’t comprehend the intense pain now being felt by the people who have lost loved ones, lost homes, and lost all their belongings. So how can such a tragedy be prevented from ever happening again?
Lightning is rare on Maui. Fewer than thirty thunderstorms rattle across the Hawaiian Islands each year, and most occur during January and February. Accordingly, there have been no reports of an August lightning strike, so it seems doubtful this tragic fire was started naturally.
According to Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, 98% of all Hawaiian fires are started by people, of which 75% are due to carelessness. Thus, a Smokey-the-Bear type campaign that “only you can prevent forest fires” would help raise people’s consciousness, especially newcomers. As retirees flock to Hawaii seeking the health benefits of a warmer climate, the population has tripled since 1980, which only increases the probability of a careless fire being started.
If started by an electrical spark, efforts to secure a vulnerable electrical grid is required. Sadly, the remaining fires have been suspiciously ignited by arsonists, and arson is nearly impossible to prevent.
However, there are other precautions that Hawaiians can take to prevent the rapid spread of fire that caught so many people in Lahaina by surprise. Dr. Clay Trauernicht, a professor of natural resources and environmental management at the University of Hawaii, notes wildfires have quadrupled in Hawaii in recent decades. We agree with his assessment that unmanaged, nonnative grasslands that have flourished in Hawaii after decades of declining agriculture have provided the fuel for more rapidly spreading and extensive wildfires.
As Maui’s pineapple and sugar cane plantations were abandoned, they became dominated by invasive annual grasses that flourish in disturbed soils. Fire experts categorize such small diameter grasses as 1-hour lag fuels, meaning that within half a day of dry weather, these grasses become highly flammable, allowing fires to rapidly spread in even moderate winds. Annual grasses typically die during the dry seasons. Maui’s rainless period typically lasts from about May 25 to July 15.
Furthermore, Lahaina is situated on the leeward side of Maui’s mountains. These highlands wring out the moisture carried by the trade winds, with only 15” of rain falling in Lahaina compared to 300” on the mountains to the east. Thus, Lahaina’s surrounding grassland vegetation is primed each summer to rapidly burn once ignited.
Figure 2 Precipitation Departure NOAA – Courtesy Cliff Mass
Counterintuitively, wet seasons create higher fire danger by increasing the abundance of dead grasses for the dry season. Spring of 2023 was cooler and wetter than normal (Figure 2), leading to high grass fuel load.
In contrast, dry seasons have little impact, as the dead invasive grasses become highly flammable quickly every season. Thus, the only protective measure for Lahaina’s future requires managing the grasslands as well as creating firebreaks that suppress a grass fire’s rapid invasion into the town.
Firebreaks protecting the whole town are especially important. If a grassfire reaches just one house in a densely packed neighborhood, such as much of Lahaina, that one house will radiate enough heat to ignite its neighboring house, which then sets off a cascading conflagration that can destroy a whole town.
The CO2 Coalition’s scientists caution against adopting useless remedies such as that proposed by the national director of the Green New Deal Network, who demanded that “President Biden declare a climate emergency and activate politicians to take further climate action.”
James Steele is a biologist, author and former director of San Francisco State University’s Sierra Nevada Field Campus. He is a proud member of the CO2 Coalition.
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