Record-breaking heat and drought fueling fires across the West

ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. (CNN) – Parched soil, dry, dead plants and grass, and now a dangerous heat wave is baking much of the western United States with winds expected to ramp up in some areas. It’s a dreaded combination as wildfires burn in a number of states.

Firefighters worry they’re in for another brutal wildfire season.

Thousands of acres have been scorched in the western US, with no relief in sight.

Angeles National Forest Fire Chief Robert Garcia said, “We’re easily a month or more ahead of fire weather conditions for this time of year.”

In fact, from the beginning of this year through June 11th, more than 833,000 acres have burned in nearly 27,000 fires across the US. During that same period last year, it was just over 658,000 acres in more than 20,000 fires. That’s according to the National Interagency Fire Center which is also tracking 25 large fires in eight states right now: Arizona, New Mexico, Florida, Utah,

Oregon, Nevada, Wyoming, and California.

Seven of those large fires are in Arizona, including the Telegraph Fire which has burned more than 100,000 acres. There have been evacuations in parts of the state and in California too.
So many fires in so many places present a significant challenge.

Chief Robert said, “The system of resources become strained when multiple regions are active like we’re starting to see already.”

Drought and heat are making things worse. The areas experiencing extreme drought are bracing for intense heat now too. By the end of the week, more than 250 heat records could be tied, fueling the fire, literally.

Garcia said, “We reach a point across multiple western states where there’s, no matter how many we have, there’s not enough fire engines to put one in every driveway.”