Amy Hessl, professor of geography at WVU, said California’s wildfires are expected to continue to be more extreme, more frequent, more widespread and more devastating as air temperatures continue to warm and precipitation becomes more variable.
(WVU Photo)

As the destruction continues with southern California’s wildfires that could be the costliest in U.S. history, one West Virginia University researcher said ongoing warm air temperatures and variable precipitation will lead to even more extreme fires in the future.

Amy Hessl, a geography professor and paleoclimatologist in the WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, has studied the relationship between fire and climate throughout the world, particularly North America, Central Asia and Australia. She attributes the widespread devastation of California’s fires to an unusual weather pattern, known as the Santa Ana or “devil winds,” that are unique to that area.

Hessl is known for her expertise as a dendrochronologist, a scientist who unravels climate histories and trends through the study of tree ring growth patterns. 

Quotes:

“California’s wildfires are expected to continue to be more extreme, more frequent, more widespread and more devastating as air temperatures continue to warm and precipitation becomes more variable. This creates alternating wet periods when fuels can build up, with extreme dry and hot conditions conducive to fire activity.

“Santa Ana winds, or ‘devil winds,’ are unique to southern California. They are an unusual weather pattern that gets set up when there is a high pressure in the desert of the Southwest and a low pressure over the Pacific Ocean, near Los Angeles.

“Air will move from high to low pressure and, in the case of the Santa Anas, this means that really hot, dry air moves from the desert up over a series of mountains. Every time that air descends towards the coast, it gets hotter due to an increase in pressure. Many fire scientists and firefighters believe that the Santa Anas produce the most extreme fire conditions anywhere in the world.

“Long records of past fires — that you can get from old trees that survived past fires, but recorded scars — can tell us a lot about how often fires occurred in the past, prior to European colonization, and what these records often tell us is that fires of pre-colonial periods were, in many cases, less extreme but more frequent than they are today.

“This change that we have seen in many places in the world is caused by the interaction between human-caused climate change, the history of land management leading to more abundant and more connected fuels, and people moving to the wildland urban interface — in other words —putting themselves in the way of fire.” — Amy Hessl, professor of geology, WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

West Virginia University experts can provide commentary, insights and opinions on various news topics. Search for an expert by name, title, area of expertise or college/school/department in the Experts Database at WVUToday. 

-WVU-

js/1/14/25

MEDIA CONTACT: Jake Stump
Director
WVU Research Communications
304-293-5507; Jake.Stump@mail.wvu.edu

Call 1-855-WVU-NEWS for the latest West Virginia University news and information from WVUToday.

After 12 years as West Virginia’s Attorney General, Patrick Morrisey was sworn in Monday morning as the state’s 37th governor.

“Together, we’re going to make West Virginia a beacon of opportunity, of hope and prosperity for all,” Morrisey said. “Our path forward is clear. It’s a path paved with hard work and bold action. Now we have some big challenges and economic obstacles in front of us, but we will overcome them.”

The inauguration also instated new Intermediate and Supreme Court of Appeals judges and five other members of the Board of Public Works, the state’s governing body.

The past three governors attended the inauguration. Those included Joe Manchin, who recently left the U.S. Senate as an Independent, Earl Ray Tomblin, who stopped into Manchin’s governor’s office, and Jim Justice, who will assume Manchin’s U.S. Senate seat as a Republican.

Morrisey is the first governor to be initially sworn in as a Republican since 1997. Justice switched parties his first year in office.

In his inauguration speech, Morrisey laid out plans to cut state taxes, reduce government regulation, support the HOPE school choice scholarship and public school teachers, improve the state’s foster care system and oppose diversity equity and inclusion initiatives.

Morrisey likened his plans for economic growth to a “backyard brawl” —  a hallmark of his campaign, referring to making West Virginia more enticing to new residents and businesses than neighboring states. Today, Morrisey specifically referenced making the state personal income tax lower than surrounding states and public teacher pay competitive.

“It’s about unleashing the full potential of our people and engaging in spirited competition every day, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Kentucky,” Morrisey said. “We’re coming for you economically.”

Morrisey also said his administration is “launching West Virginia’s version of DOGE,” referring to President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed extra-governmental Department of Government Efficiency. During Morrisey’s campaign, he pointed to audits of state agencies and departments as key to finding policy solutions; during his transition, Morrisey emphasized continuing to focus on “repurposing and rightsizing” government.

“We’re going to take a bulldozer to the barriers of government that hold you back,” Morrisey said. “We’re going to get big, big things done.”

Before leaving office, Justice signed onto a Jan. 10 letter to Congress from Republican governors in support of the federal DOGE. Morrisey said he also aims to partner with the incoming presidential administration on energy policy and deregulation. 

“If ever there was an honorary West Virginian, it should be Donald Trump,” Morrisey said.

After the state gubernatorial Republican primary last spring, which Morrisey won with a plurality of 33.33% of votes, Trump endorsed Morrisey. Morrisey won the general election with 61.99% of votes; Trump won West Virginia’s electoral college votes with 69.98% of votes. Trump will be inaugurated on Jan. 20.

West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez is far from being done in the transfer portal, but with nearly two dozen pickups thus far, I figured we could start taking a closer look at the stars of the group.

We will revisit this before spring practice and then prior to the start of fall camp, as more players will be added, so we’ll adjust the list. For now, here are the five transfers who I believe will make the biggest impact.

Jahiem White is clearly RB1, but in this day and age, you need two or three capable running backs, especially in a Rich Rodriguez offense. Edwards brings a different dynamic to the table with his 6-foot-4, 240-pound frame. He can hammer it in between the tackles to give WVU a nice lightning-and-thunder combo, similar to what they had with White and CJ Donaldson. He rushed for over 1,000 yards and six scores this season.

Perry brings a level of physicality that has been pretty much non-existent in the Mountaineer secondary over the last handful of years. He does have some versatility to him as well, being able to play deep safety, up in the box, and even in the slot if needed. Assuming he makes the transition to the Power Four level smoothly, he’ll have a chance to play on Sundays.

West Virginia’s wide receiver room underwent a near-complete makeover, but with the addition of Cam Vaughn, they have a dynamic playmaker they can build with for the next three seasons. In his redshirt freshman season at Jax State, Vaughn caught 48 passes for 803 yards and five touchdowns. Not too shabby for someone who just made the switch from quarterback a year ago.

After losing Josiah Trotter (Missouri) and Trey Lathan (Kansas) to the transfer portal, the Mountaineers desperately needed to add a veteran linebacker who could come right in and make a difference. Over his last two seasons at Colorado State, Wilson tallied 205 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, seven passes defended, 3.5 sacks, and two picks. A tough, hard-nosed kid who fits this defense like a glove.

West Virginia beat out Ole Miss to land one of the best cover corners in the transfer portal in Michael Coats Jr. This past season with the Wolfpack, he notched 41 tackles, 14 passes defended, and four interceptions, finishing in the top five nationally in the last two categories. Barring some crazy get in the portal, I expect Coats to be the top acquisition out of the portal this offseason for the Mountaineers.

QB Jaylen Henderson (Texas A&M), RB Tye Edwards (Northern Iowa), RB LJ Turner (Catawba College), WR Cyrus Traugh (Youngstown State), WR Cam Vaughn (Jacksonville State), WR Daveon Walker (Butler C.C.), WR Jarod Bowie (Jacksonville State), WR Oran Singleton Jr. (Eastern Michigan), TE Jacob Barrick (Jacksonville State), TE Johnny Pascuzzi (Iowa), OL Walter Young Bear (Tulsa), OL Robby Martin (NC State), OL Wyatt Minor (Youngstown State), OL Kimo Makane’ole (LSU), DE Braden Siders (Wyoming), LB Chase Wilson (Colorado State), LB Ashton Woods (North Carolina), CB Derek Carter (Jacksonville State), CB Jordan Scruggs (South Alabama), CB Devonte Golden-Nelson (Akron), CB Michael Coats Jr. (Nevada), S Justin Harrington (Washington), S Will Davis (Virginia Union), S Fred Perry (Jacksonville State), S Jordan Walker (Chattanooga), and K Ethan Head (Tulane).

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

WVU QB Transfer Ryder Burton Chooses Transfer Destination

MAILBAG: Strength of Transfer Class, Portal Strategy, GM Dynamic, Future Departures + More

Mountaineer Postgame Show: WVU 78, Colorado 70

Initial Thoughts on West Virginia’s Win Over Colorado