: a very intense and destructive fire usually accompanied by high winds
The Rooses' house and gardens were obliterated in the 1991 Oakland firestorm. Craig Summers Black
especially: one that is started by attack with nuclear or incendiary weapons and that creates a powerful updraft which causes very strong inrushing winds to develop in the surrounding area
His goal was to create firestorms like the ones that had consumed Hamburg and Dresden, conflagrations so vast and intense that nothing could survive them … David M. Kennedy
The bombing left the city engulfed in a firestorm. His proposal set off a political firestorm. a firestorm of public protest
Recent Examples on the WebThe matter has set off a firestorm of condemnation from liberal leaders in the Big Apple and the nation’s capital. Emma Colton, Fox News, 14 Aug. 2022 Nevertheless, news of the Nebraska investigation — and Meta’s participation — set off a firestorm, following the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade. Andy Meek, BGR, 11 Aug. 2022 The news of their missing records set off a firestorm because the texts could have corroborated the account of a former White House aide describing the president’s state of mind on January 6. Carol D. Leonnig And Maria Sacchetti, Anchorage Daily News, 29 July 2022 The news of their missing records set off a firestorm because the texts could have corroborated the account of a former White House aide describing the president’s state of mind on Jan. 6. Carol D. Leonnig And Maria Sacchetti, BostonGlobe.com, 29 July 2022 The news of their missing records set off a firestorm because the texts could have corroborated the account of a former White House aide describing the president’s state of mind on January 6. Maria Sacchetti, Washington Post, 29 July 2022 In 1971, the YA book Go Ask Alice hit shelves and almost immediately set off a firestorm. Elisabeth Garber-paul, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2022 The Utah Legislature’s appointment of Reed Smoot, then an LDS apostle, to the U.S. Senate in 1903 caused a national firestorm — and a four-year battle in the Senate over whether Smoot was eligible to be a senator. Palak Jayswal, The Salt Lake Tribune, 22 Aug. 2022 The unprecedented search has set off an enduring political firestorm, directed in large part at the Department of Justice but also toward law enforcement in general. Brigid Kennedy, The Week, 17 Aug. 2022 See More