83 Large Wildfires Have Burned 1,366,587 Acres Across Western US

Wildfire activity continues in 13 states where 83 large wildfires have burned 1,366,587 acres, reports the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). Almost 22,000 wildland firefighters and support personnel are assigned to incidents. To date, 36,172 wildfires have burned 2,697,108 acres in the United States.

• Related: Brain Post: Burn Scars – How Wildfires Can Cause Dangerous Flash Flooding

The National Preparedness Level remains at 5, the highest level of severity for wildfires. 

Last weekend, fuels and fire behavior advisories were issued for south/central Idaho, Northern California, Northern Rockies, and south/central Oregon. Many of these advisories describe extraordinarily dry fuels, resulting in elevated fire potential and fire activity. Visit the Predictive Services website to read more about these advisories.

We all play a valuable role in wildfire prevention. The national average of human-caused wildfires comprises 87% of all wildfire occurrences every year. Most of these fires can be prevented. Please #RecreateResposibly while enjoying your public lands.

– NIFC

Idaho (23) currently has the most wildfires, followed by Montana (17) and Washington (9). The other fires are in the following states: California (8), Oregon (7), Alaska (6), Wyoming (4), Arizona (3), Utah (2), Colorado (1), Minnesota (1), Nevada (1), and Florida (1).

Weather

High pressure aloft will remain near the Four Corners with very dry westerly flow aloft for the northern Intermountain West. Above normal temperatures and low relative humidity are expected for the northern Intermountain West with poor to moderate recovery overnight. Dry and breezy conditions will continue across the inland Northwest, Sierra Front, and Northern Rockies with critical winds amid low relative humidity likely over northwest and north-central Montana, extending southward into southeast Idaho. Isolated to scattered mixed wet and dry thunderstorms are likely for southeast California while scattered to numerous monsoonal thunderstorms continue for southern Utah, southern Nevada, Arizona, western New Mexico, and the Colorado Rockies. Flash flood potential will remain in portions of Arizona and western New Mexico. Scattered to numerous thunderstorms with wetting rain are likely for northern Minnesota and the northern Great Lakes.