‘Devastating suburban forest fire’ more possible than ever

Dangerous mix of people, trees

David Crossley, Sep 01, 11.

From the Hill Country to the Piney Woods, suburban sprawl and drought have produced a very dangerous mixture of people and dry trees, according to Texas State Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon, who notes “in most of central and eastern Texas, not only is there dry grass, but there are dead vines, dead shrubs, and dead or dying trees”:

The unthinkable, a devastating suburban forest fire in Austin or Houston, is now more possible than it ever has been.

It’s still unlikely on any given day, but the precise day in which it’s more likely to occur than any previous day in history is Labor Day. MORE (this material is in the next to last paragraph of a complicated post)