National Fire News

National Preparedness Level 1 

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.

May 3, 2024

Eight new large fires were reported in the past week. Currently, three large uncontained wildfires are burning in California, Oregon and Florida. Wildland firefighters and support personnel contained nine large fires this week. 

For a look ahead, check out the National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlook for seven-day and monthly outlooks generated by predictive services within the National Interagency Coordination Center. 

Are you living in or near the wildlands and taking a gamble that wildfire won’t happen in your backyard?  Wildfire is a process that nature needs, and it will happen…it’s not a matter of “if” it is a matter of “when” so do your part now and be prepared for when the weather starts drying vegetation out. Make your home a safe place with fire resistant plants and building materials. Have an emergency plan for your family and pets. Improve your odds of your home surviving a wildfire by doing simple things before nature rolls out fire season in your community. 

Reduce your risks and help our firefighters by becoming fire adaptive and Firewise.

Weather

A slow-moving cold front is forecast to move from the Lower Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes to the East Coast through Saturday with showers and thunderstorms along and ahead of the front. Another cold front will move south on the Plains this weekend, with showers and thunderstorms producing heavy rain over much of central Texas and Oklahoma, while lighter precipitation is forecast for the Mississippi Valley and central Plains, then gradually south and east to the East Coast and Southeast next week. However, much of Florida will receive little if any precipitation, with minimum relative humidity below 40% at times. A deep, strong, and slow-moving upper low will move into the Northwest today, then through much of the West this weekend into early next week. Widespread moderate precipitation is forecast across the northern two- thirds of the West, with snow levels 4,000 to 6,000 feet, and heavier rain/snow likely in the Cascades and northern Sierra. Windy conditions will develop across much of the Intermountain West this weekend into early next week, but be mitigated by higher RH, periods of precipitation, and green-up. However, the Southwest will be considerably drier, with minimum relative humidity of 5-25% Sunday and Monday, with elevated to critical conditions likely along and east of the Divide in New Mexico. Downslope winds are forecast off the Alaska Range into portions of the Interior this weekend, with above normal temperatures. 

Daily statistics
Number of new large fires or emergency response 
* New fires are identified with an asterisk
8 States currently reporting large fires:
Number of active large fires
Total does not include individual fires within complexes.
3
Acres from active fires 2,000
Fires contained 9
Year-to-date statistics
2024 (1/1/24-5/03/24) Fires: 12,693 Acres: 1,833,012
2023 (1/1/23-5/03/23) Fires: 14,119 Acres: 428,506
2022 (1/1/22-5/03/22) Fires: 8,350 Acres: 1,137,556
2021 (1/1/21-5/03/21) Fires: 19,218 Acres: 523,204
2020 (1/1/20-5/03/20) Fires: 12,471 Acres: 257,329
2019 (1/1/19-5/03/19) Fires: 10,802 Acres: 213,283
2018 (1/1/18-5/03/18) Fires: 18,658 Acres: 1,393,182
2017 (1/1/17-5/03/17) Fires: 20,313 Acres: 1,996,139
2016 (1/1/16-5/03/16) Fires: 16,189 Acres: 1,469,944
2015 (1/1/15-5/03/15) Fires: 15,873 Acres: 322,753
2014 (1/1/14-5/03/14) Fires: 19,583 Acres: 370,919
10-year average Year-to-Date
2014-2023 Fires: 16,750 Acres: 800,104
Current Wildfires
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 0
Contained: 2
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
Barnes 
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Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management - Southeast District 
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ST 315 100 Two miles southwest of Maricopa, AZ  
Range 
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Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management - Southeast District 
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ST 2,000 100 Six miles northeast of Florence, AZ  
Fires: 1
Acres: 1,286
New: 1
Contained: 0
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* School 
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Kern County Fire Department 
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ST 1,286 50 Four miles east of Maricopa, CA  
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 0
Contained: 1
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
Range 127 
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Fort Carson Army Base 
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DoD 1,475 100 Seventeen miles south of Colorado Springs, CO  
Fires: 1
Acres: 464
New: 2
Contained: 1
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* 75 RD 
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Florida Forest Service 
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ST 464 50 Started on private land 12 miles east of Frostproof, FL  
* New Wales 
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Florida Forest Service 
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ST 1,500 100    
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 1
Contained: 1
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* Elderberry Lane 
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Kentucky Division of Forestry 
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ST 120 100    
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 1
Contained: 1
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* Almost Home 
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Warroad Forestry Area, MN DNR
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  486 100    
Fires: 1
Acres: 250
New: 1
Contained: 0
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* Little Yamsay 
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Fremont-Winema National Forest 
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USFS 250 5 Twenty-five miles southeast of Chemult, OR  
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 1
Contained: 1
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
* Penescal 
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Texas A & M Forest Service 
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ST 419 100    
Fires: 0
Acres: 0
New: 1
Contained: 2
Fire Unit Agency Size % Ctn Location Information
24WR00482 
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Virginia Department of Forestry 
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ST 150 100 Two miles northeast of Nancy, VA  
* Huckleberry Knob 
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George Washington & Jefferson National Forests 
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USFS 150 100