firestorms

firestorms were sometimes created by intensive bombing raids on a city's built-up areas. It is a natural process for a fire to draw in air to consume its oxygen. When many buildings were ablaze during a heavy raid great heat was generated, and the convection the fires caused by sucking in air disseminated sparks and burning debris which started other conflagrations. The more fires the greater the heat and the greater the convection until, in a matter of seconds, all the fires could coalesce into one massive inferno which created hurricane force winds coming from every direction, and temperatures of 800°C.

The first firestorm occurred in the early hours of Wednesday 28 July 1943 during an RAF raid on Hamburg and was created not only by the intensity of the bombing but by the mixture of explosives and incendiaries used, and by the high natural temperature and low humidity. Within an hour of its happening the Hamburg Fire Department recorded the incident by coining the word Feuersturm to describe it. It affected an area of 22 sq. km. (8.5 sq. mi.) and either asphyxiated or burnt to death about 40,000 people. Firestorms also occurred in raids on Dresden, Kassel, and Tokyo (see strategic air offensives, 3).