How Washington is preparing for high wildfire danger

Wildfires in our state have already burned tens of thousands of acres this summer, and it could just be the start. High fire danger is ramping up again, putting communities across Washington at risk to get a clear picture of the risk and what our state is doing to protect us. We're joined by Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Updegrove. Thank you for joining us, Dave. Pleasure to be here. All right. Well, the fire weather outlook for the next several days is showing increased risk, especially with thunderstorms in the forecast. How are you guys preparing for this? As Commissioner of Public Lands, I lead our state's wildfire response, and this is a big responsibility. Our focus is on public safety, and you're absolutely right that the dry weather, the forecast for thunderstorms, increase that risk. 90% of the fires in Washington state are human caused, so we all have a role to play. But lightning strikes or the other primary cause. So with potential thunderstorms coming up, we are positioning aircraft and equipment and people around the state. We also have artificial intelligence cameras to detect smoke. We have state of the art surveillance planes, so our goal is to get on these fires quickly and get them out to keep people safe. Yeah, well, we've already had several major fires within the last month. Which fires you guys most concerned about with right now? Right now, all of our major fires are under control. We have had a challenging season. 779 fires have started in Washington. 122,000 acres have burned. Families have lost homes in Spokane, Chelan, the Okanagan. We've sadly seen the loss of life on a couple fires, so this is a challenging season. Um, we're in a strong position. We have aircraft positioned around the state. We have engines. We have people. Um, on right now, things are under control. But with potential lightning strikes and people getting out in our public lands, this is gonna be a high risk weekend. Yeah. Do you guys feel like this year's fire outlook is more severe than years past? And I know, especially in terms of the drought conditions, we've really been watching that. Yes, this is an above average fire risk this year, in part for the reason you noted. This is the fourth year in a row. Our state has declared a drought emergency. That's never a good thing. Also, because these air human cause more and more people getting out enjoying our public lands also increased that risk. People need to be safe. Make sure their campfires are out to the touch. Um, don't drag chains with your trailers. Don't park your cars on hot grass. We all have a role to play to make sure we're not the spark that starts that next fire. Do you guys feel like already this summer? I mean, I know we're only mid july. Do you feel like we're already seeing the impacts of the drought this summer already? Drought in and of itself doesn't necessarily increase fire risk it in some indirect ways. It does. It makes our forest less healthy over time, so they're more susceptible. It means when things get dried out and we have rain, it takes longer to for those trees to get wet again. The real risks tend to be human behavior tend to be lightning strikes. Um, and the drought certainly doesn't help. Um, but drought in and of itself isn't the primary concern. It's really human behavior. It's these lightning strikes and we're gonna make sure we get there and get these fires out. Yeah, I mean, that is a crazy statistic thinking that most of these wildfires, like you said, are human cause. And of course, I do want to go over this. What can we do to reduce the virus, especially around our homes? First, the State Department of Natural Resources that will help people make their property safe for wildfire to reduce the risk things you can do on your own clear firewood away from your home. Um, clean your gutters, trim the lower branches. If you are on a large piece of property with forest land, we can even provide grants and assistance to come in and thin out those forests, reduce the fuel. That work really pays off. I've been out and visited these fire sites and I've seen a home that has taken care of their property that's still standing right next to a home that didn't do this work that's burned to the ground. So, um, if if there are steps that people have questions, they can go to the State Department of Natural Resources website for more information. All right. Thank you so much day for being with us and hopefully we see some better conditions here continuing through fire season. Thank you.