Posted on Oct 7, 2023
The risk of wildfires is growing across the Midwest, as harvest begins and drought lingers
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Hot and dry weather across the Midwest is creating a ripe situation for wildfires, especially as farmers head into the fields for harvest.
A large fire in a farm field recently brought together firefighters and a dozen farmers to fight the blaze near Emerson in far southwest Iowa.
Brian Hamman, the emergency management director for nearby Montgomery County, estimates the fire burned up to 300 acres.
“It’s so dry, it just takes high wind and a spark, and off it goes,” Hamman said.
Drought is fueling concerns over the risk of wildfires throughout the Midwest. Dennis Todey, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Midwest Climate Hub, said while grass fires are not uncommon for the Plains states, the fire risk is following on the heels of drought.
“Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, and parts of Illinois are usually wet enough that there is usually just an infield risk,” he said. “However, there is more of a problem due to ongoing drought conditions and the severity of dryness.”
Todey, who is based in Ames, Iowa, said there are always issues when farmers head into the fields for harvest, but now there is a real risk of fires spreading.
A large fire in a farm field recently brought together firefighters and a dozen farmers to fight the blaze near Emerson in far southwest Iowa.
Brian Hamman, the emergency management director for nearby Montgomery County, estimates the fire burned up to 300 acres.
“It’s so dry, it just takes high wind and a spark, and off it goes,” Hamman said.
Drought is fueling concerns over the risk of wildfires throughout the Midwest. Dennis Todey, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Midwest Climate Hub, said while grass fires are not uncommon for the Plains states, the fire risk is following on the heels of drought.
“Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, and parts of Illinois are usually wet enough that there is usually just an infield risk,” he said. “However, there is more of a problem due to ongoing drought conditions and the severity of dryness.”
Todey, who is based in Ames, Iowa, said there are always issues when farmers head into the fields for harvest, but now there is a real risk of fires spreading.
The risk of wildfires is growing across the Midwest, as harvest begins and drought lingers
Posted from kcur.org
Farming
Agriculture
USDA
Climate Change
Water
Posted 7 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
"A wildfire burns near Exeter, Rhode Island, in April.
Unusually hot and dry northeastern and upper Midwest states are forecast to be wildfire hotspots this summer, while historically fire-prone Western states, including California, have a lower-than-normal predicted wildfire risk.
A summer wildfire outlook from the National Interagency Fire Center paints an atypical picture, with the highest potential for wildfires largely in the northernmost parts of the country. New England states including Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well as parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin and nearly all of Michigan – along with areas in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest – are also facing an elevated risk of fire.
Weeds grow through the cracked soil on what would usually be on the bottom of the Hoppin Hill Reservoir, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, in North Attleboro, Mass. The City of Attleboro, like much of the Northeast, is experiencing drought like conditions.
The situation is “pretty unique,” Allan Hepworth, a US Forest Service wildland fire analyst for the Northeast, told CNN.
It’s “been a long time (since) California and the Southwest have been green on the map when the Northeast has been red,” Hepworth added."...
"A wildfire burns near Exeter, Rhode Island, in April.
Unusually hot and dry northeastern and upper Midwest states are forecast to be wildfire hotspots this summer, while historically fire-prone Western states, including California, have a lower-than-normal predicted wildfire risk.
A summer wildfire outlook from the National Interagency Fire Center paints an atypical picture, with the highest potential for wildfires largely in the northernmost parts of the country. New England states including Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well as parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin and nearly all of Michigan – along with areas in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest – are also facing an elevated risk of fire.
Weeds grow through the cracked soil on what would usually be on the bottom of the Hoppin Hill Reservoir, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, in North Attleboro, Mass. The City of Attleboro, like much of the Northeast, is experiencing drought like conditions.
The situation is “pretty unique,” Allan Hepworth, a US Forest Service wildland fire analyst for the Northeast, told CNN.
It’s “been a long time (since) California and the Southwest have been green on the map when the Northeast has been red,” Hepworth added."...
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The implications to public health in the Midwest is significant as well. Nothing exacerbates COPD, asthma and emphysema quite like a smoke-laden environment, and the median age in rural communities lends itself to these disease processes.
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