Pacific Northwest Wildfires Threaten 2.6 Million Acres as Winds Return This Weekend

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 5

Friday and Saturday forecasts call for breezy winds and low humidity across eastern Washington and Oregon, conditions meteorologists say could push active wildfires over control lines and speed new fire spread.
Those winds are expected to be about half as strong as the Aug. 1 blast that destroyed more than 700 buildings around Spokane, but fire officials warned even moderate gusts can ignite fast-moving blazes.
Since Jan. 1, fires have burned an estimated 2.6 million acres in the Pacific Northwest, far above the five-year average of 593,253 acres for this point in the season.
An especially warm winter left vegetation tinder-dry, and July lightning outbreaks ignited dozens of fires that were still burning when last weekend's winds fanned them, especially in central Oregon.

Sources

If winds are weaker than last week, why are firefighters still warning eastern Washington and Oregon could see dangerous new wildfire surges?

With dry fuels, lightning scars, and thin firefighting resources, which Northwest communities are most vulnerable to the next wind-driven blaze?

What does a 2.6-million-acre fire season reveal about how the Pacific Northwest’s wildfire risk is changing?