US raises wildfire preparedness to highest level amid resource strain

US fire authorities on Saturday raised the national wildfire preparedness level to Level 5, the highest on the country's five-tier scale, as dozens of large wildfires strained national firefighting resources.

The US National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) listed 73 uncontained large fires nationwide, including 17 new incidents reported in the past day.

A total of 22 complex incident management teams and 17,683 firefighters and support personnel were assigned to active incidents, the NICC said in its latest national situation report.

The Northwest Geographic Area was at Preparedness Level 5 and accounted for 36 uncontained large fires, 13 of the country's 17 new large incidents and 10 committed incident management teams, the federal report said.

The region recorded 58 new fires during the past day and had 5,860 personnel assigned across 37 incidents, supported by 151 crews, 382 fire engines and 31 helicopters. The concentration of new fires made the Northwest the nation's most active wildfire region, it said.

In Oregon, the East Evans Creek Road fire threatened numerous structures and communications infrastructure, with evacuations and closure of roads, areas and trails in effect, authorities said. The Salmon and Olive Butte fires also threatened homes and critical infrastructure, while the Akawa Butte fire prompted evacuation orders as firefighters reported extreme fire behavior.

In Washington state, the Lyons Ferry fire threatened numerous structures and forced evacuations and closures.

The Rocky Mountain Geographic Area remained at Preparedness Level 4 with seven uncontained large fires, six of them in Colorado, according to the report. The Gold Mountain, Elk, Willow and Ferris fires threatened homes, other structures and infrastructure as firefighters continued suppression efforts.

In northern Minnesota, rainfall moderated fire activity, but federal authorities said homes, communications facilities and energy infrastructure remained under threat. The Bear Trap fire burned about 140 square kilometers, while the Sioux fire burned about 44 square kilometers and destroyed three structures.

The Little Knife fire, burning northeast of Grand Marais, crossed the international border from Canada into the United States, authorities said.

Four military C-130 aircraft equipped with the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System continued supporting wildfire operations nationwide, the report said. Two aircraft were assigned to Klamath Falls, Oregon, and one each to San Bernardino and Santa Maria in California.

Wildfires have burned about 15,600 square kilometers across the United States this year, about 33% above the 10-year average, according to the NICC. The fires have affected more than 20 states, with the heaviest activity concentrated in the Northwest, the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin and parts of the Upper Midwest.

The National Interagency Fire Center Predictive Services forecast hot, dry and breezy conditions across the inland Northwest, northern California and the western Great Basin in the coming days. It also forecast a mix of wet and dry thunderstorms across parts of the Great Basin, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana.