Wildfire Map Shows 10 States Being Warned of ‘Extreme’ Risk

National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists are warning 10 states in the Central and Northern U.S. of “extreme fire” risk.
Five states are under a red flag warning, which says that weather conditions support extreme fire danger, and a fire weather watch is in place for seven states. The dangerous conditions have been spurred by above-average temperatures, windy conditions and dry weather.
Red flag warnings are in place for Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, South Dakota and Nebraska. The fire weather watch is in place for Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois. All of the states with warnings in place are experiencing some form of drought, according to the most recent U.S. Drought Monitor Map.
“The combination of well above average temperatures, dry conditions, and gusty south to southwest winds will lead to very high to extreme fire danger over northwest Iowa from late morning through the early evening today,” one warning said. “The greatest fire danger will be over the dried cropland where harvest is ongoing.”
Most of the warnings are in place through Wednesday evening and warn about “very high to extreme fire danger.”
NWS meteorologist Timothy Gunkel told Newsweek that dry weather is typical for this time of the year, at least in the Quad Cities forecast region, which is in Iowa and Illinois.
“Farm vegetation has dried out and is ready to harvest,” Gunkel said, adding that increased winds can contribute to wildfires.
The dry weather will persist, Gunkel said, because there is no rain in the forecast for this week or next week. Temperatures have been above average in the area, with Wednesday’s forecast looking to be around 4 to 6 degrees above average. Temperatures will continue to rise as the week progresses, with temperatures in the mid-80s by this weekend, up to 10 degrees above normal for some areas.
Residents in the affected areas are encouraged to help prevent wildfire danger by avoiding or delaying outdoor burning, properly disposing of cigarettes and cigars, securing truck and trailer chains, and avoiding using any equipment that can spark outdoors.
Unharvested agricultural fields are at an increased danger, the NWS Quad Cities office warned.
“If a fire were to ignite, it could spread quickly!” the office said on X (formerly Twitter).
Gunkel said that fire weather conditions will continue for the foreseeable future.
Temperatures are expected to remain above normal for the next few weeks, according to the NWS Climate Prediction Center. It shows that all of the states at risk of fire danger have a likely chance for above-average temperatures through October 15.