[imagesource: Image: Vjeran Pavic/The Verge]

This year alone, wildfires have destroyed a record 2,3 million acres of land across California.

One of those fires could have been avoided.

It was started by a couple in Eldorado Park on September 5, 2020, when their attempt at a gender reveal party went horribly wrong, setting off a blaze that firefighters are still working to contain.

Fires are also spreading through Oregon after strong winds followed an unprecedented heatwave, which took a bad situation and made it much, much worse.

In San Francisco, the sky has turned an apocalyptic orange caused by rising smoke in the atmosphere.

CNN explains:

“When the smoke and ash get even thicker close to the wildfires, it can cut the sunlight out completely, making it look like the dead of night,” CNN meteorologist Judson Jones said.

Winds are carrying the smoke from the Creek Fire and the North Complex Fire burning more than 320km away. ‘The Creek fire’ is what they’re calling the one caused by the gender reveal party.

Other areas like Salem are also experiencing similar glows.

The Verge‘s video director Vjeran Pavic used a drone to capture the skies over San Francisco, on Wednesday morning, just after sunrise:

Image: Vjeran Pavic/ The Verge

Image: Vjeran Pavic/ The Verge

Image: Vjeran Pavic/ The Verge

Image: Vjeran Pavic/ The Verge

Beautiful, but terrifying.

The smoke is so thick that it’s messing with weather forecasts. Roger Gass, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service (NWS), is appealing to residents in the area to post their own weather forecasts so that they can adjust their models.

“This is beyond the scope of our models so we rely on your reports! …. The models do not seem to be keeping up with the thick layer of smoke as far as temperature forecast data, visibility.”

As the winds taper off, gravity will pull the smoke down. That could mean darker skies and even worse air quality, according to NWS.

Firefighters are working around the clock to get things under control.

Let’s see some drone footage of San Francisco from yesterday, starting with a video from ABC News:

More from CBS News:

Finally, this from TheUforiaFilms, shot at 1PM yesterday, with no colour changes done in post-production:

[source:verge&cnn]