Japan's worst wildfire in half a century spreads

engulfed more than 2600 hectares. That's equivalent to the size of about 2600 football fields. Now some 4600 people have been given evacuation orders. For more on the ongoing wildfires, we have joining us live now, Dr. Samuel Mandela. Visiting professor at the Institute of Fluid Science at Tohoku University, dialing in from Tokyo. Thank you for joining us on

the Morning Report all the way from Japan. Um, wildfires, they don't tend to be common in Japan, uh, or rather they're not uncommon, uh, but this is quite uh a once in a few decades phenomenon. Uh, we normally see about 1200 such wildfires reported annually in Japan. Most of these do tend to occur during these few months. So what then makes makes this one different, the one in Iwate?

Thank you very much for having me. So I think, um, one of the main things to understand is that when the wildland fire spreads into an urban area, this is called a wildland urban interface fire, and this is what we actually see a lot, as you mentioned, in LA and also um in Hawaii and many other countries in Australia.

But in Japan, for example, when wildland fires have occurred, there hasn't been actually a large number of them actually spreading into urban areas and destroying so many buildings. And so that's what makes I think this particular fire very unique is that, um, Japan has not basically had a woo fire problem as we call it. And so, um, you know, as you mentioned, we've seen it in many other places. So it's a, it's a, it's a very unfortunate situation happening now.

Uh, Doctor Manzello, just to help us contextualize this wildfire, how does it compare to the one that we saw in California earlier this year? So clearly, I mean, the one in California destroyed, um, you know, more than 10,000 building structures. So this was a very huge amount of destruction. Um, uh, so, you know, currently, the one in Japan has not destroyed nearly that many um uh structures. Uh, what's the possible trigger that set off this fire

near Ofunato City? You talked about how this had something to do with the urban environment as well. Uh, could you walk us through what might have sparked this? So I know that in this, um, uh, you know, they've had a record drought, um, that's occurring there and basically, you know, this is in northern Japan, so normally there would be much more snowfall and other kinds of activities that happen. And that hasn't, um, uh, been occurring and, you know,

you're seeing these kind of events all over the world. Um, one thing that's important to point out, for example, in Northern Europe, um, this is an area that traditionally hasn't had this type of fire situation, but now, for example, you see in Norway or Sweden and these other countries,

it's also burning. And so, you know, we've been saying for a long time from a research point of view that unfortunately, this problem has been growing and depending on where you live in the world, it might be only a matter of time before you experience it. So, not to give a negative message, but it's, it's something that's very important to, you know, everybody should pay attention to it because many countries also don't have any building codes, building standards or codes to deal with problems.

So once the fire is spread into urban area, you could expect to see this sort of massive. destruction that you see. And judging by how more frequently these wildfires are happening in these areas, uh, what do the governments then need to do to safeguard against them or at least mitigate the amount of destruction, the next one might bring.

So I think one thing that's very important is that in these fires is that when anything burns, you get the generation of very small particles which are called firebrands. And then these lock very long distances, for example, and make it very hard to control the fire. And so, um, I think it's important, um, uh, countries need to develop, uh, testing standards and methods for how to deal with these

fire bright exposures. And also, another thing that's important, I think just in general, is that the public has to understand that, you know, just because you saw that in LA like it. Never happened to me. Actually, you, you shouldn't think that way,

that actually, it could really happen anywhere, basically. And anywhere where you're near a forest, and, you know, you should consider that if your country or your town doesn't have any, any standards or codes or any preparation for this, you should be very concerned about it because there's a possibility it could happen to you. So, um, it's just important

to get as much public attention to it. And so I'm very happy to have the chance to talk to you today because even in Singapore, I mean, other countries should be aware of these kind of problems. Doctor Manzello, firefighters are now fighting hard to control the blaze. What will the authorities need to be focusing on now to contain the fires apart from just fighting it as well?

So I think the firebrands are the one big, big problem because for example, when a, let's say if you look at the videos, if a tree is burning or let's say a house or a home gets caught on fire, um, if under high winds, firebrands can then be transported very far distances. And so it's very hard to control and also predict that kind of fire spread.

And so, um, they're hoping for some rain and other kind of activities there, so that should help the situation greatly, but, um, the fire rats are just a very sort of chaotic kind of problem that's very hard to deal with. So that's something that you have to look for. And also, as you know, probably Japan is a very mountainous country. And so because of the high mountains and the very difficult terrain, it makes it very difficult to deal with the problem. Well, looking at the way the fires.

are spreading and the firebrands that are floating in the air and being carried by the wind and given those weather conditions, Dr. Mandela, how likely will it spread further into the city or spill over to other parts of Japan beyond Iwate? So there, there's always the possibility, I mean, of continued spread.

I mean, I think what's important to understand is any other areas in Japan that are very force and, of course, if there's been droughts or other like type of activities, there's a possibility that these kind of fires could also occur.

And so of course we're hoping it doesn't happen in other place, but it's just not, you know, I wouldn't consider it as something a very rare event that this type of disaster could happen, I think at any time, and I mean, it's very important to try to be as prepared for it as possible. We know the Japanese, they are well prepared for earthquakes with regular drills, but how prepared are they for wildfires given how rare these are in comparison?

So I don't, Japan, I mean, has not prepared very well. I don't think, for the wood fire threat. Um, one thing that Japan has done very well in the past is that they've been subjected to very large scale urban fires. And so for example, because of the urban fire situation, but you probably can understand that when a wildlife fire comes into a city, the way that the fire is spreading into the city is different than what you have with an urban fire situation. And so, um, I think.

You know, now these fires are happening, there, there will need to be a rethink and also, um, you know, a greater focus on how, how they can deal with these type of threats in the future. As, and I don't think it's specific to Japan. I mean, many countries are not prepared for this. And so, I mean, it's just important for the, for everybody to be aware that, you know, wherever you live, it might happen. So I mean, You know, be, be prepared for this type of event. Yeah,

it's fair warning even to us here in Singapore as well. Now, if there are any of us that happen to find ourselves in a situation like the one in Iwate Prefecture, what can we do? I mean, we know we should uh heed the authorities's advice, seek an evacuation center perhaps, uh, but this is unfamiliar ground to many of us, especially here in Singapore. Uh, what should we do, Doctor Mandela? I think the most important thing is to listen to

what the local authorities advise you to do. So I mean, if they, if they recommend evacuation orders, you should follow those, um, and, uh, um, you know, follow the advice of your local authorities and local government. Dr. Mandela, uh, we thank you for your time uh and for these timely updates as well. Uh, we hope that the situation will abate soon. In the meantime, we'll check in on you another time, but we thank you for uh joining us today.

Thank you very much for having me and I appreciate the opportunity to, to, to talk about the dangers of this problem. Absolutely, pleasure is ours. Uh, Doctor Samuel Manalo, he's visiting professor at the Institute of Fluid Science at Tohoku University in Japan.