A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area.[1][2] Reflecting the type of vegetation or fuel, other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, grass fire, hill fire, peat fire, vegetation fire, and wildland fire may be used to describe the same phenomenon. A wildfire differs from other fires by its extensive size, the speed at which it can spread out from its original source, and its ability to change direction unexpectedly and to jump gaps, such as roads, rivers and fire breaks.[3] Wildfires are characterized in terms of their physical properties such as speed of propagation; the combustible material present; the effect of weather on the fire; and the cause of ignition.[4]
Wildfires occur on every continent except Antarctica. Fossil records and human history contain accounts of wildfires, which can be cyclical events.[5][6] Wildfires can cause extensive damage, both to property and human life, but they also have various beneficial effects on wilderness areas. Some plant species depend on the effects of fire for growth and reproduction,[5] although large wildfires may have negative ecological effects.[4]
Strategies of wildfire prevention, detection, and suppression have varied over the years, and international wildfire management experts encourage further development of technology and research.[7] Current techniques may permit and even encourage smaller fires in some regions to minimize or remove sources of flammable material from any wildfire that might develop.[8][9] While some wildfires burn in remote forested regions, they can cause extensive destruction of homes and other property located in the wildland-urban interface: a zone of transition between developed areas and undeveloped wilderness.
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