Early‑Season Wildfires Surge Nationwide, Boosting Focus on Prescribed Burns
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Federal, state and tribal land managers and lawmakers are racing to respond to an unusually active early wildfire season — with fires already burning in Florida and outbreaks reported across the country in spring 2026 — by ramping up prescribed burns and other fuel‑reduction work aimed at preventing larger blazes. The push is being driven by on‑the‑ground conditions: more than half of the contiguous United States and Puerto Rico were in moderate drought or worse as of April 9, 2026, and officials cite heat, extended dry periods and low mountain snowpack as intensifying fire risk. The Department of the Interior and forest managers have made prescribed fire and fuel mitigation central operational priorities this season in hopes of limiting what otherwise could become a more destructive year.