JACKSON, Wyo. — Following a drought-free run that lasted for about four and a half years, Teton County is officially in a drought for the first time since October 2016.
Abnormally dry conditions in March and April along with a below-average spring snowpack are largely responsible for the current drought conditions.
So what does this mean for the upcoming dry season? Forecasters from a recent AccuWeather report say that Wyoming will likely be in for another aggressive fire season.
This year’s season is forecast to burn 9.5 million acres of land across the western U.S., which would be 130% of the five-year average and 140% of the 10-year average.
According to the report, the western half of Wyoming will be at extreme fire risk in the upcoming summer, and the eastern half is projected to be at a higher risk as well.
The report said, “In the Pacific Northwest, forecasters are looking at Washington, Oregon, and Wyoming as areas that could also see the fire season quickly spring to life.”
Although Wyoming is not technically in the “Pacific Northwest”, it’s still being compared to other states that often experience extreme fire seasons. The wind is a usually large factor of wildfires, which Wyoming has in common with more western states.
“Wind is the fire’s number one friend. We saw that after lightning storms in August and September,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Samuhel said. “There was a huge wind event. If there’s going to be another wind event like that, then this will be, by far, a record year just given how much drier it is this year than it was at this time last year. Those wind events are more likely [to occur] real late in the summer and into the fall.”
The report also states that a “significant lack of precipitation in recent months” has set more than 75% of the western US up for a busy fire season. Twenty-one percent of the western US is under “exceptional” drought.
Millions of acres potentially could be consumed this year, according to the report.
