Last weekend, federal officials at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise raised the country’s wildfire preparedness level to the highest point possible, 5 out of 5.
When the U.S. reaches preparedness level 5, it can become harder for local fire managers to get the federal resources they need due to increased fire activity nationwide.
And even though Arizona is in the midst of monsoon season, Bobbie Scopa, a former assistant fire director for the U.S. Forest Service, says the state isn't out of the ponderosa pine woods quite yet.
“Just because it rains, you guys … all over the rim country are getting hammered with lightning,” says Scopa.
That lightning means some trees could be smoldering — all it would take is a few dry days, she adds. In her retirement, Scopa divides her time between Washington state and Arizona.
“Those smoldering fires that are hidden inside old logs that are hidden inside trees… they're going to pop up into flames,” she says.
Then, firefighters would need to respond quickly.
Their response could be hampered by a scarcity of federal firefighters and personnel. That’s a tough spot for local fire crews to be in.
That’s something Scopa knows about all too well. Her experience includes helping prioritize fires across two states. Occasionally, she asked for more national support.
“You have to start really making tough decisions,” she says. “When you've got a lot of fires, and you're told you've got everything you're going to get, or you're not going to get any more — I mean, it's a tough feeling.”
It’s tough, she says, because local fire managers can’t expect their own teams to take on more risk just because federal resources aren’t available.
The U.S Wildland Fire Service did not respond to KNAU’s interview request for this story.
Stanton Florea, a spokesperson for NIFC, tells KNAU that the triaging of federal resources for certain fires has been underway since the spring.
He says the U.S. is not currently receiving help on its wildfires from other countries, though that could change in the weeks and months ahead.
Right now, almost 21,000 people are working to fight 72 large, uncontained fires across the country.
“The public and the politicians need to have a realistic expectation about what we can really do, and when we're in [preparedness level] 5, there's going to be some fires that you don't have enough people to be effective,” Scopa says.
She wishes the U.S. Forest Service and other federal agencies would hire more firefighters and support personnel to help with intense seasons like this one.
Because climate change means fires seasons are getting longer, Scopa doesn’t anticipate this one letting up anytime soon.
“The firefighters are going to be chasing smokes until October, just because that's just the way it is,” she says.
