The Bootleg fire is so big it's creating its own climate

Bootleg fire burns more than 120,000 acres in Oregon 1:14

(CNN) -

As hot, dry weather continues to fuel wildfires across much of the United States, the Bootleg Fire in Oregon has grown so intense that it is creating its own climate.

The fire has burned more than 1,500 square km, an area larger than Los Angeles and about half the size of Rhode Island.

It is 30% contained, according to data from the interagency website InciWeb.

There are at least eight large fires burning in Oregon, including the Bootleg, and at least 83 in 13 states, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

The climate crisis has made the deadliest and most destructive wildfires the new normal.

An entire town evacuated due to forest fires 3:03

"There is absolutely no doubt that climate change is happening before our eyes," Gov. Kate Brown said at a news conference.

"We saw the heat dome event a few weeks ago. Unfortunately we lost a lot of Oregonians during that event. We saw devastating ice storms in February. Over half a million people were without power last fall, as you well know. We had unprecedented wildfires, "he recapitulated.

More than 3.5 million people are under red flag warnings for fire weather conditions, according to authorities.

Meanwhile, more than 337,000 people will remain under excessive heat warnings and another nearly 650,000 more are under heat alerts.

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Temperatures in the region will remain 5.5 degrees Celsius above normal for the next 48 hours, CNN meteorologist Michael Guy said.

There is also the possibility of dry storms, which do not bring the precipitation that is desperately needed to help calm the flames.

There may be some sporadic rains, but they won't be enough.

The Bootleg fire is changing the weather

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released satellite images showing smoke from fires in western Canada and the Western Intermountain region spreading over the area.

https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/incendio-video-satelital.mp4

In Oregon, firefighters noted that the Bootleg shows "aggressive surface spread with pyrocumulus development."

Pyrocumulus clouds form when extreme heat from wildfire flames forces the air to rise rapidly, condensing and cooling any moisture from the smoke particles produced by the fire.

Essentially these clouds become their own thunderstorms and can contain lightning and strong winds.

The fire is "so big and it's generating so much energy and extreme heat that it's changing the climate," Kauffman explained.

"Normally, the weather predicts what the fire will do. In this case, the fire predicts what the weather will do."

The prolonged drought is also fueling the fire conditions, and Kauffman anticipated that it would continue to grow.

"The fire is burning ... dense fuels that are extremely dry from a prolonged drought. To this day, the weather has been consistently hot, dry, with humidity close to single digits," he said.

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The Dixie fire continues to burn this July 20 in Butte County, California, where it has burned more than 24,000 hectares.

(Credit: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection)

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Firefighters extinguish hot spots in an area affected by the Bootleg Fire, near Bly, Oregon, on July 19.

(Credit: David Ryder / Reuters)

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The Tamarack fire burns in Markleeville, California, near the Nevada border, on Saturday, July 17.

The fire was caused by lightning on July 4 and has led to the mandatory evacuation of several campsites and neighborhoods in the area.

(Credit: Ty O'Neil / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images)

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A member of the Northwest Incident Management Team holds up a map of the Chuweah Creek fire as the fires ravage Nespelem, Washington, on Friday, July 16.

(Credit: David Ryder / Reuters)

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Firefighters spray water from the Union Pacific fire train as they fight the Dixie Fire in California on July 16.

(Credit: Noah Berger / AP)

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Horses climb a hillside burned by the Chuweah Creek fire in eastern Washington.

(Credit: David Ryder / Reuters)

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The fire from the Bootleg fire lights up smoke near Bly, Oregon, on the night of July 16.

(Credit: Payton Bruni / AFP / Getty Images)

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A firefighter battles the Bootleg Fire in the Fremont-Winema National Forest, along the Oregon-California border, Thursday, July 15.

(Credit: US Forest Service / ZUMA Press Wire)

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Dee McCarley, evacuated from the fires, hugs her cat Bunny at a Red Cross center in Klamath Falls, Oregon, on Wednesday, July 14.

(Credit: Nathan Howard / AP)

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An airplane fires flame retardant at the Chuweah Creek fire in Washington on July 14.

(Credit: David Ryder / Reuters)

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Fire consumes a home as the Sugar Fire, part of the Beckwourth Complex fire, ravages Doyle, California, on July 10.

It is the second time in less than a year that the small town has been devastated by a forest fire.

(Credit: Noah Berger / AP)

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Two men hug a Red Cross member at a Bootleg fire evacuation center in Klamath Falls, Oregon, on July 12.

(Credit: Mathieu Lewis-Rolland / Reuters)

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The Sugar fire burns in Doyle, California, on July 9.

(Credit: Noah Berger / AP)

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A group of firefighters monitor the Sugar fire in Doyle, California, on July 9.

(Credit: Noah Berger / AP)

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In this long-exposure photo, taken early on July 2, flames surround a drought-stricken Lake Shasta during the Salt Fire in Lakehead, California.

(Credit: Josh Edelson / AFP / Getty Images)

Doug Grafe, chief of fire protection for the Oregon Department of Forestry, said drought conditions are driving the potential for fires.

90% of the state is in exceptional, extreme or severe drought conditions.

"This will not return to normal anytime soon," said Grafe, warning that they will face a "long and difficult fire season."

An additional 200 to 400 square km may be burned before the fire is contained, he said.

The third largest fire in Oregon history

The Bootleg Fire started July 6 in the Fremont-Winema National Forest near the California border and has left little in its wake.

More than 2,000 people are currently evacuated from their homes, according to Firefighter Public Information Officer Sarah Gracey.

67 houses have been destroyed, along with 117 minor structures, such as sheds or garages, Gracey said.

The fire has had an average rate of spread of almost 4.5 square kilometers per hour for more than 13 consecutive days: this rate would devastate Central Park in New York in just 45 minutes.

And there appears to be little hope of making progress in the face of the flames, as wind gusts of up to 40 km / h are expected in the coming days, Guy said.

"Fighting this fire is a marathon, not a sprint," said Rob Allen, commander of a Pacific Northwest emergency management team in an update Tuesday.

"We will be in this for as long as it takes to confine this monster safely."

The Bootleg is the third largest wildfire in state history, Kauffman said.

The biggest since 1900 was the Long Draw fire in 2012, Kauffman explained, and second is the Biscuit fire in 2002.

CNN's Jenn Selva, Brandon Miller, Claire Colbert, and Chris Boyette contributed to this report.