As August begins, the Northwest already has seen 53 large fires on over 200,000 acres; most across U.S. human-caused

PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- As August begins, fire weather forecasters predict higher-than-average temperatures will continue to dry fuels in the region and, along with lightning, cause numerous natural fire starts across Oregon and Washington, the U.S. Forest Service warned Tuesday

Since the end of May, fire managers in the Pacific Northwest have engaged in fighting 53 large fires covering just over 200,000 acres, including National Forest lands.  

Through initial and extended attack, firefighters work to keep fires small, as they did with last week’s starts from lightning in central, south-central and eastern Oregon.

"However, without significant cooling and rain, communities should anticipate more large fires on the landscape in August and September," the agency said.   

With four large wildfires currently burning on National Forests in the region, 15 national forests are now in campfire restrictions to help prevent additional human-caused wildfires. Fire danger levels on all National Forests, except the Siuslaw National Forest, are High to Extreme.  

Fire managers say that with numerous expected natural ignitions, now is the time for people to double down on fire prevention efforts. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, this year, nearly 93% of all wildfires in the nation have been started by people. 

For more news and information about national forests in the Pacific Northwest, visit our news page at https://www.fs.usda.gov/news/r6/news-events or our home page, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/r6. For more information about the USDA Forest Service visit https://www.fs.usda.gov.