U.S. wildfire season exceeds 10-year average as 99 large fires burn
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Newsletters Axios Local Show Axios Pro Axios Live The Axios Show Login Axios All topics Axios Search 11 hours ago - Energy & Climate U.S. wildfire season exceeds 10-year average Rebecca Falconer email (opens in new window) sms (opens in new window) facebook (opens in new window) twitter (opens in new window) linkedin (opens in new window) bluesky (opens in new window) Add Axios on Google Add Axios as your preferred source to
Add Axios on Google A firefighter with the Sonoma County Fire District patrols the fire perimeter during the Feliz Fire near Hopland, California, on Saturday. Photo: Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Wildfires in Washington and Oregon have forced evacuations, caused power outages, and burned hundreds of thousands of acres as firefighters battle dozens of massive fires across the Pacific Northwest.
Why it matters: The blazes are among 99 active large fires burning across the U.S. as this year's wildfire season exceeds the 10-year average for both the number of fires and the acres burned, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
State of play: Washington has 17 active large fires. In the Spokane area, three major blazes — known collectively as the Spokane Complex Fire — have forced some 60,000 people to evacuate, knocked out power to thousands more, and destroyed about 640 structures, officials said Sunday.
Zoom out: Idaho and Montana each have seven active large fires, per the NIFC. Minnesota and California each have six, Colorado and Nevada each have five, while Florida and Utah have three apiece. Alaska, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming each have one.
Between the lines: Climate change is contributing to larger, more frequent wildfires across much of the U.S. West, studies show. It is also increasing the frequency of critical fire weather and driving more extreme fire behavior, making fires harder to contain.
What we're watching: Wildfires and poor air quality are expected to continue across the Pacific Northwest, the Rockies and parts of the Plains, according to the National Weather Service .
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