More than 200 wildfires broke out in the southeastern US last week, marking an active start to the region's annual fire season. A particularly large fire in a forest near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, forced dozens of evacuations and scorched more than 2,000 acres of land. Firefighters have largely contained the most severe blazes, but fire risk remains high in parts of the region. Severe wind and an unusually long period of dryness in the Southeast have made it easier for wildfires to ignite and spread. Meanwhile, a weather disaster that hit last year may be helping supply ample fuel to keep the flames raging. In September, Hurricane Helene tore through the Southeast, dumping more than a foot of rain in some locations and knocking over hundreds of thousands of acres of trees across the region. Now, these dried-out trees act as kindling and could block firefighters' access to the fires. This deadly combination of hurricane-fueled destruction and drought is expected to get worse as...
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