California’s week of heat and wildfires foretell a punishing autumn

The fall season traditionally brings the highest fire risk to the west, but experts are bracing for even more explosive blazes

It was an explosive Labor Day across California, as an intense, days-long heatwave smashed temperature records, spurred the spread of deadly and destructive wildfires, and bathed cities in a stifling heat even long after the sun went down.

The events mark a grueling start of what traditionally make up the highest fire-risk months in the west, with experts bracing for a higher potential of a punishing autumn even after a milder-than-expected summer.