US National Interagency Fire Center Wildfire Update as of March 14

The US National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) reported that 11 new large wildfires were reported in the week ending March 14 in the Southern, Rocky Mountain, and Northern Rockies areas. Wildland firefighters contained five large wildfires.

A complex incident management team is assigned to the Covington Drive Fire in South Carolina. More than 1,100 wildland firefighters and support personnel are assigned to incidents across the nation. The National Fire Preparedness Level has been raised to a 2 out of 5.

Daily Statistics

As of Friday morning, there were a total of 31 large wildfires burning: 15 in Oklahoma; four in Texas; two each in Florida, Kentucky, and Missouri; and one each in Massachusetts, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, and South Dakota. All 31 wildfires are being fought under full suppression strategies.

The updated year-to-date comparison is as follows:

• Year-to-date through March 14, 9,988 wildfires have been reported, and they have burned 303,868 acres.
• During the same period last year, 5,177 wildfires were reported, and they had burned 1,617,294 acres.
• The 10-year average (2015–24) for the same time period is 6,971 wildfires and 483,963 acres burned.