as of October 13, 2023 at 7:30 a.m. MDT (on a scale from 1 to 5)
Current hours for the National Fire Information Center are
(MST) 8:00 am - 4:30pm, Monday - Friday
208-387-5050
This report will be updated on Fridays.
Please check the IMSR for more information.
April 19, 2024
Eighteen new large fires were reported in the past week. Currently, three large uncontained wildfires are burning in Kansas, Virginia, and North Carolina. Wildland firefighters and support personnel contained 22 large fires this week.
The National Interagency Coordination Center predictive services staff released the National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlook on April 1. Parts of the Eastern, Rocky Mountain and Southwest areas could see above normal wildfire potential this month.
A fuels and fire behavior advisory remains in effect for Northwest Texas, western Oklahoma, southwest Kansas, southeastern Colorado and far eastern New Mexico. Should unwanted ignitions occur, wildland fire personnel should expect extreme to unprecedented fire growth and intensity in these areas due to high fuel loads and windy and dry atmospheric conditions.
During the past decade, wildfires have become more destructive. These sometimes-historic blazes can be attributed to several factors. Accumulated fuel, like dead trees and brush, becomes a tinderbox ready to burn when combined with drought. We cannot stop hot weather and lightning storms, but we can do our part to be fire-wise when we are recreating, traveling, or maintaining our homes. Take the time to find out the weather conditions and fire danger where you live and plan to vacation. Get the information you need about current wildland fire danger and be prepared. Start here: https://www.nifc.gov/nicc/predictive-services/fuels-fire-danger
Over the next week, areas with elevated fire weather concerns will primarily be focused on parts of the Southwest and South, with southern Arizona/New Mexico and Florida having the highest potential for significant wildfires to arise. A cold front moving through the Plains and into the Southeast over the weekend will bring higher humidity to most areas and widespread wetting rain from central Texas to the southeast Atlantic coast; however, Florida will likely remain hot and dry. Warm and dry conditions will persist in the southern Great Basin, Mojave Desert, and Southwest (west of The Divide) into early next week, with daily relative humidities of 5-20% and overnight recoveries below 50%. Across the Southwest, breezy winds will contribute to the gradual, seasonal increase in fire potential. Elsewhere in the West, normal to below normal temperatures, accompanied by light precipitation, are expected for the Northwest and Northern Rockies over the weekend. Similarly, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic will see scattered light precipitation through the weekend. A few more days of dry and breezy conditions are expected across the northern Plains and Upper Midwest, although some modest precipitation is possible next week. Mild and dry conditions are forecast for much of Interior Alaska into the weekend, with a gradual cooling trend early next week, while dry and occasionally breezy trade winds are forecast for Hawai’i.
Number of new large fires or emergency response * New fires are identified with an asterisk |
18 | States currently reporting large fires: |
Number of active large fires Total does not include individual fires within complexes. |
3 | |
Acres from active fires | 5,919 | |
Fires contained | 22 |
2024 (1/1/24-4/24/24) | Fires: 10,199 | Acres: 1,774,404 |
2023 (1/1/23-4/24/23) | Fires: 12,366 | Acres: 387,475 |
2022 (1/1/22-4/24/22) | Fires: 11.544 | Acres: 865,290 |
2021 (1/1/21-4/24/21) | Fires: 16,602 | Acres: 446,599 |
2020 (1/1/20-4/24/20) | Fires: 11,002 | Acres: 216,678 |
2019 (1/1/19-4/24/19) | Fires: 9,433 | Acres: 219,438 |
2018 (1/1/18-4/24/18) | Fires: 16,250 | Acres: 961,775 |
2017 (1/1/17-4/24/17) | Fires: 17,987 | Acres: 2,337,864 |
2016 (1/1/16-4/24/16) | Fires: 14,611 | Acres: 1,433,318 |
2015 (1/1/15-4/24/15) | Fires: 14,213 | Acres: 309,369 |
2014 (1/1/14-4/24/14) | Fires: 17,812 | Acres: 288,285 |
2014-2023 | Fires: 13,930 | Acres: 695,318 |
Arkansas
Florida
Idaho
Kansas
Kentucky
Mississippi
Missouri
Fire | Unit | Agency | Size | % Ctn | Location | Information |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
* 446 Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 511 | 100 | ||
Backbone Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 450 | 100 | Fifteen miles west of West Plains, MO | |
* Bar K Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 119 | 100 | ||
* Eclipse Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 128 | 100 | ||
* Minninghaw Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 288 | 100 | ||
* Spring Edit |
Mark Twain National Forest Edit |
USFS | 130 | 100 |