Summit County Citizens Voice

An aerial view of the smoke from the Moose Mountain Fire in Alaska. PHOTO COURTESY ALASKA FIRE SERVICE.

Nationally, wildfires have burned nearly 3 million acres for the year-to-date, the most in the past 10 years and double the average

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A grass and brush fire in the eastern Sierra Nevada near Bishop has closed a popular bouldering area.

The Buttermilk fire started May 25 and the cause is under investigation. As of May 26, the fire had burned about 250 acres and is 50 percent contained. Campgrounds in the area have been evacuated. Strong and erratic winds pushed the fire quickly through the dry brush, but firefighters don’t expect the fire to grow much larger.

Nationally, wildfires so far this year have burned across almost 3 million acres, double the average acreage for this time of year and the most in the past 10 years. By comparison, the total acreage affected at this date last year was 420,000 acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

The 10-year average is about 1.2 million acres. The only year that came anywhere close the past 10 years was 2006, with 2.5 million acres.

Texas remains the hotspot, with six fires burning on about 33,000 acres. Other wildfires are burning in North Carolina (1), New Mexico (1), about 86,000 acres, Mississippi (1), Louisiana (1), Georgia (1), Arizona (1) and Alaska, where three fires are burning across about 5,000 acres, with red flag warnings in effect.

Year to date fire stats from the National Interagency Fire Center.

Filed under: climate and weather, Environment, forest fires, forests, seasons, US Forest Service, wildfires Tagged: | Alaska wildfires, Buttermilk fire, fire news, National Interagency Fire Center, New Mexico, North Carolina, Sierra Nevada, Summit County News, Wildfires