The 2018 wildfire season was one of the worst in California history. The Mendocino Complex Fire, which started in July and was not extinguished until the following January, was the largest such fire since records began in California (it was exceeded by the August Complex fire in 2020). And at the start of August 2018, it was one of five major fires burning in locations across the state, in addition to a multitude of smaller ones.
The natural disaster was soon politicised by those who denied the measurable, observable reality that wildfire seasons the world over were becoming longer and more intense due to climate change.
