Gender Reveal Party Causes Wildfire in California

How a gender reveal party caused a massive wildfire and west coast wildfires cause skies to turn “apocalyptic”

• Gender reveal party fire
• Potential charges for starting the fire
• This is not the first gender reveal party fire
• Resources expended to the limit
• Orange skies
• How this happened

The wildfires on the west coast continue to worsen when yet another fire has been started by a gender reveal party. The El Dorado fire in San Bernardino County was caused by a “smoke-generating pyrotechnic device” during the party according to a Cal Fire press release. In the same week, many residents of the west coast states also woke up to orange skies that were caused by the smoke from wildfires.

Gender reveal party fire

According to the LA Times, the El Dorado fire has been burning for 9 days and has scorched almost 15,000 acres since then. The fire is currently 44% contained. As a result of the quick pace of the fire, evacuation orders have been issued in the communities of Oak Glen, Yucaipa Ridge, Mountain Home Village, and Forest Falls. According to Cal Fire, the Yucaipa Community Center is being used as a temporary evacuation facility.

The CalFire investigator Captain Bennet Milloy called the event a “tragedy” as the family was “hoping to remember the day in a different way.” Milloy warned people to be cautious of their surroundings because “you could be held liable.” The investigator added that 80 percent of wildfires are caused by humans.

This is not the first gender reveal party fire

Despite the surprising turn of events, this is not the first time a gender reveal party has caused a wildfire. In 2017, a similar party in Arizona resulted in a fire that burned over 47,000 acres and caused over $8 million in damages. In that case the expecting father shot the explosive with a rifle. He pleaded guilty in 2018 to the misdemeanor which resulted in a 5 year probation and a restitution of almost $8.2 million.

Resources expended to the limit

Meanwhile, the El Dorado fire has caused 600 personnel, 60 engines, 6 aircrafts, and 6 helicopters to be deployed to fight the growing fire. Because of the continued dry weather, the fire continued to burn overnight and seven national forests in Southern California have been forced to close to the public due to “the monumental fire threat” according to a San Bernardino National Forest press release.

Orange skies

In other relevant news, west coast residents woke up to orange skies that were caused by wildfire smoke in the sky. People compared the “apocalyptic” orange and sometimes red skies to the planet Mars, the “Blade Runner 2049” movie, and TV shows “The Stranger Things” and “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” Air quality levels of the affected locations turned hazardous during that week.

How this happened

According to NASA, the ominous color of the sky was caused by smoke particles blocking certain wavelengths of the sun. They said, “The smoke particles from the fires allow sunlight’s longer wavelength colors like red and orange to get through while blocking the shorter wavelengths of yellow, blue, and green.”

They added that, “Those wavelengths give the sky a red or orange tinted appearance. Similarly, during sunrise and sunset times when the sun is near the horizon, sunlight has to travel through more of Earth’s atmosphere to get to you.

The additional atmosphere filters out the shorter wavelengths and allows the longer wavelengths to get through, providing reds and oranges during those times.”

The CBS News Meteorologist and Climate Specialist Jeff Berardelli said, “When smoke is thick it gathers so much light that the whole sky appears orange even during midday, the same as the horizon at sunset.”

Sydney Boles

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