I always thought these fires happened all the time, either caused by people or by lightening strikes…. Then they may or may not spread out of control depending on wind, dryness, etc..
Am I wrong?
They do happen all the time. The thing is, as good stewards of the land is to make them less destructive. That is done by grazing the land (eliminating dry brush) clearing out dead trees so the surrounding trees don’t catch canopies on fire, making sure reservoirs are filled and there are sufficient reservoirs. Establishing breaks where needed.
You will never eliminate wildfires, but they can be less deadly.
In this age of electric car battery recharging, the demand for electricity is maxing out the electric grid. Those electric lines are arching and sparking. One fault could send sparks into the fuel of brush tinder and take off into wild fire.