A staggering 2.1 million of U.S. acreage has burned as a result of wildfires from January 1st to March 17th, 2017, which is roughly ten times ahead of the average for the period, according to industry reports.
Analysis from the National Interagency Fire Center shows that the 2006-2015 annual average U.S. fire total is 8,687, which results in an annual average acreage burned of 216,894.
From the beginning of 2017 to March 17th, a total 10,829 fires have occurred, resulting in 2,062,012 acreage being burned, which is roughly ten times above the ten-year average.
Jessica Gardetto of the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, recently explained that most of the wildfires have been vast grass fires in Oklahoma and Kansas, with the two regions both setting records for the number of acres burned in March.
So far this year, in Kansas alone, approximately 650,000 acres have burned, with the causes yet to be determined, although typically such fires are controlled or planned, according to Kevin Doel, a spokesman with the Kansas State Fire Marshal’s office.
Highlighting just how severe conditions are in Oklahoma during the opening three months of the year, the National Weather Service has revealed that Oklahoma City has received just 0.01 of an inch of rain so far in March, which is less than 1% of the region’s typical March precipitation.
Furthermore, the weather service predicts that ongoing warm and breezy weather conditions could bring ideal conditions for fires to spread in Oklahoma on numerous days this week.
Further highlighting the unusual and challenging wildfire conditions in parts of the U.S., hundreds of people were forced to leave their homes on Sunday, March 19th, 2017 in Colorado, which, was partly driven by dry conditions.
March is typically Colorado’s snowiest month of the year, and Boulder County Sheriff’s Commander, Mike Wagner said conditions in the region were concerning and could result in major fire season this summer.
