Click Here for California Fires
August 7, 2024 - A group of 71 fire management personnel from Australia and New Zealand are arriving in the U.S. to assist with management of numerous 
wildfires across the West. The personnel are arriving at the National Interagency Fire Center in two groups- one on Wednesday and one on Friday.
The two contingents will receive a daylong orientation and situation briefing as well as having equipment issued to them for the duration of their assignments. They will then be traveling to assist with various wildfires in the Pacific Northwest. The personnel are primarily fire managers that can provide safety and fireline supervision consistent with U.S. wildland fire standards.
The Australian and New Zealand firefighters are tentatively expected to depart the U.S. on September 11, although their plans are subject to change depending on the fire situation.
Mutual wildland fire assistance between the countries goes back several decades. Most recently, the U.S. sent several hundred personnel to Australia to assist with a series of devastating wildfires from December of 2019 to April of 2020. In 2023, the U.S. sent 2,774 wildland firefighters to Canada during a historic fire season across multiple provinces.
Media contact at NIFC is Stanton Florea at 208-387-5437 or stanton.florea@usda.gov. For more information about the mobilization of wildland firefighters from Australia and New Zealand visit the international support page.
Currently, 88 large active wildfires are being managed with full suppression strategies nationwide. Wildfires have burned 2,289,077 acres nationwide. About 28,373 wildland firefighters and support personnel are assigned to wildfires, including 26 complex and 3 Type 1 incident management teams, 606 crews, 1,619 engines, 165 helicopters, and six Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems, or MAFFS.
Evacuation orders are in effect on 19 wildfires. If you live in an area that has been evacuated, please follow the instructions from local authorities. They will provide the latest recommendations based on the threat to your community and appropriate safety measures. If you are concerned about the potential for evacuation or other disaster impacts, https://www.ready.gov/ can help you get plans in place.
Take a look at the fuels and fire behavior advisories issued for Colorado's Front Range and Eastern Wyoming, Southwest Oregon, the region east of the Cascades in Oregon and Washington, Nevada, Southern Idaho, Utah, and California. Residents, travelers, or workers on their way to any of these states should be advised and familiarize themselves with the elevated risks.
The current reporting from source data for year-to-date figures appears to be underreporting fire acreage in some geographic areas and, therefore, the overall national statistics. Given the very high tempo and scale of national current fire activity, there will be delays in reconciling, especially from areas with large fires and dynamic fire activity. Adjustments may occur as the accuracy of fire locations, mapping and final fire reporting is reconciled.
Very low relative humidity of 5-20% will continue across much of the Inland Northwest, California, Great Basin, and southwest Wyoming, with poor overnight recovery of 20-40% for mid-slopes and ridges. Dry conditions, low relative humidity, and hot temperatures are likely across much of New Mexico into the southern Plains, as well. Winds will be lighter overall with westerly winds generally 10-15 mph across the West with southeasterly winds on the southern Plains. However, stronger westerly sustained winds of 15-25 mph with gusts 30-45 mph will develop in the Upper Snake River Plain into western Wyoming for elevated to locally critical conditions ahead of a cold front. Gusty northerly winds of 10-20 mph are also likely in the Okanogan Valley of Washington, spreading into portions of the Columbia Basin. Scattered wet thunderstorms will develop near and east of the Divide in Montana into eastern Wyoming and the northern Plains. Isolated to scattered mainly wet thunderstorms will develop in much of Arizona, western New Mexico, and the Colorado Rockies, although drier storms are possible in eastern Utah. Heavy rain and extensive flooding will continue in the eastern Carolinas due to Tropical Storm Debby, with showers and thunderstorms spreading north into the Mid-Atlantic and southern New England. Strong southerly Chinook winds gusting to 50 mph will continue north of the Alaska Range for the eastern Interior, with well above normal temperatures.
| Number of new large fires or emergency response * New fires are identified with an asterisk |
7 | States currently reporting large fires: |
| Total number of active large fires Total does not include individual fires within complexes. |
88 | |
| Acres from active fires | 2.289.077 | |
| Fires contained | 4 |
Year-to-date statistics
| 2024 (1/1/24-8/07/24) | Fires: 29,509 | Acres: 4,758,910 |
| 2023 (1/1/23-8/07/23) | Fires: 32,188 | Acres: 1,364,123 |
| 2022 (1/1/22-8/07/22) | Fires: 39,774 | Acres: 5,847,353 |
| 2021 (1/1/21-8/07/21) | Fires: 39,108 | Acres: 3,506,321 |
| 2020 (1/1/20-8/07/20) | Fires: 33,493 | Acres: 2,286,517 |
| 2019 (1/1/19-8/07/19) | Fires: 28,090 | Acres: 3,575,535 |
| 2018 (1/1/18-8/07/18) | Fires: 39,398 | Acres: 5,354,188 |
| 2017 (1/1/17-8/07/17) | Fires: 40,408 | Acres: 5,962,283 |
| 2016 (1/1/16-8/07/16) | Fires: 35,646 | Acres: 3,533,569 |
| 2015 (1/1/15-8/07/15) | Fires: 37,582 | Acres: 6,058,694 |
| 2014 (1/1/14-8/07/14) | Fires: 34,895 | Acres: 2,029,528 |
10-year average Year-to-Date
| 2014-2023 | Fires: 35,872 | Acres: 3,893,615 |
Source: NIFC
