The massive rainfall and snow California received this winter will likely delay the upcoming wildfire season for the state – though all that moisture is unlikely to curtail it much if at all, a wildfire report out today shows.
The AccuWeather Fire Outlook 2003 report forecasts between 7,000 and 8,000 wildfires and between 400,000 and 1 million acres burned during the California wildfire season – both figures are around historical averages for numbers of fires acreage burned for the state from 2001 to 2022.
The U.S. region that faces the highest wildfire risk this year is the interior Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies, while the numbers of fires in the U.S. in 2023 may be closer to the historical averages and the acreage burned may be slightly above, the report shows.
In some California areas, winter storms could result in more fuel for wildfires, according to the AccuWeater outlook.
Other notes in the report for California include:
- Potential later start of wildfire season due to significant moist fuels and occasional interruptions to the dry season
- Wildfires may increase in the north by late summer after a period of early to midsummer drying, in early fall southern areas
- Mid-to high-elevation snowpack will lower any chances of early summer wildfires, and may wait until fall
- Watching tropics for Southern California late summer and fall, which can interrupt the dry season
- Significant growth should dry out this summer as usual in Southern California, but it’s unknown if there will be more wind and lighting compared to 2022 to start fires.
Topics California Catastrophe Natural Disasters Wildfire Windstorm
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Deere Retreats From Diversity Measures After Online Attacks 
FM Global Rebrands As FM 
Study Urges Rethinking of Disaster Management in Era of Compounding Events 
Soccer Officials Arrested After Melee That Damaged Hard Rock Stadium in Miami 
