Wildfire activity remains at an unusually high level across the United States, with more than 100 large fires burning and tens of thousands of firefighters and support personnel assigned to incidents around the country.
The National Interagency Fire Center reported Wednesday that 101 large fires remained uncontained nationwide. More than 30,000 personnel are currently assigned to wildfire response, and the nation remains at Preparedness Level 5, the highest level on the federal scale.
The Northwest is seeing the heaviest concentration of activity. NIFC reported 44 uncontained large fires in the region, with major incidents in Oregon and Washington continuing to threaten homes, communities and infrastructure. Evacuations and road or area closures remain in effect around several fires.
Oregon was reporting 23 large fires Wednesday, while Washington had 20. Idaho had 10, Montana had nine and California had six. Large fires were also burning in Colorado, Nevada, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico and several other states.
The scale of the 2026 fire season has required additional help. Military personnel and international firefighting resources are participating in the national response as crews work to contain fires and provide relief to resources that have been deployed for extended periods.
So far this year, firefighters have responded to approximately 46,500 wildfires that have burned more than 6.4 million acres. NIFC says both the number of fires and acreage burned are running well above the 10-year average.
Conditions remain favorable for additional fire activity in several western states. Dry air, above-normal temperatures and the threat of thunderstorms producing lightning with little rainfall could lead to new fire starts in portions of California, Washington, Idaho and Montana.
Federal fire officials have warned that the elevated threat is unlikely to disappear quickly. Above-normal significant fire potential is expected to continue across much of the Northwest and portions of the northern and interior West through August.
Residents and travelers in wildfire-affected areas are being encouraged to follow evacuation notices, road closures and local emergency information as conditions can change rapidly.
