Red flag wildfire warnings issued across at least nine states

Louise Boyle
Updated ·1 min read
Jim Garinger, fights a fire outside his home built by his great-grandfather, March 31, 2023, in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Garinger and his family were able to save his family home with the help of firefighters. Extremely dry conditions in Oklahoma combined with high winds to fuel several large wildfires that forced interstate closures and sent residents fleeing from their homes (Jessica Garinger via AP) (Jessica Garinger)

Red flag warnings have been issued across at least nine US states on Wednesday as the risk of wildfire increased due to hot, dry and windy conditions.

Alerts were issued from New Mexico through Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Massachusetts from this morning until evening, and into Thursday in places.

The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center warned of a focused area of Critical Fire Weather conditions across north-central Kansas into Nebraska on Wednesday, and across southern Colorado through eastern New Mexico on Thursday.

A red flag warning translates as heightened risk of fire danger as high temperatures and arid conditions means any blaze that starts could spread quickly.

Well above average, early summer-like temperatures were spreading across the Plains, Midwest, and Northeast, the National Weather Service (NWS) said on Wednesday.

Highs across the Central Plains and Upper Midwest are expected to reach into the mid-to upper 80s today while temperatures will soar into the upper 70s and 80s in the Mid-Atlantic, and up into the Northeast and New England on Thursday.

There’s potential for daily high temperature records to be broken in a number of places, NWS reported.

Residents were advised to avoid outdoor burning and not to use power equipment that may give off sparks. They were also warned to keep vehicles off dry grass and properly dispose of cigarettes.

In Ocean County, New Jersey, firefighters were tackling a massive 500-acre forest fire which was only 10 per cent contained after igniting on Tuesday night.

The US is experiencing more large and intense wildfires than ever due to extreme heat and drought conditions driven by the climate crisis.