Devastation has struck the state of California extra hard this year. According to the records, 2018 has been the most destructive wildfire season ever for the Golden State. Unfortunately, not only have the fires done severe harm to the environment, but they are also killing many people and displacing countless others.

The fires have caused an extreme amount of pollution and emit an alarming amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. New findings were announced that detail that this year’s wildfire season in California released the equivalent of 68 million tons of carbon dioxide. That is about how much carbon dioxide the state’s electricity division uses per year. California residents are being poisoned for simply breathing this air and all the deadly chemicals it contains–not to mention they are being left without homes because of the rapidly growing and catastrophic wildfires. Paradise, California, was a wonderful and lively town before it was incinerated by California’s worst wildfire. Not only was the town burned entirely to the ground, but the fire took the lives of 85 citizens with it, leaving the community shattered.

Although California officials and the U.S. government will be spending roughly $1 billion on wildfire prevention, the wreckage and chaos these wildfires have caused residents and the environment cannot be repaired. We all truly wish the victims the best of luck recuperating from their loss, and hopefully these devastating fires will become a much less common occurrence.