Fire Weather Risk High As Dry Conditions Linger: Forecasters

TAMPA, FL — As thousands of acres across Florida continued to burn due to active wildfires Wednesday morning, forecasters at the National Weather Service issued a warning that lingering dry conditions could spark more blazes. Fire weather, the agency reported, is likely to remain a big concern across west central and southwest Florida through the workweek.

In a Hazardous Weather Outlook report issued on Wednesday, weather service forecasters said long-term dry conditions in the region coupled with low relative humidity expected Wednesday are anticipated to elevate fire danger levels. While moisture is expected to increase across the region Thursday and Friday, high temperatures in the upper 80s to mid-90s “will continue the elevated fire danger,” the agency reported.

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Rain chances return to the forecast on Saturday, but are slight, at 20 percent. Increased rain chances are forecast heading into the early part of next week, with a 30 percent chance of showers forecast in the region both Monday and Tuesday.

As dry conditions continue across large portions of Florida, a wildfire-related state of emergency remains in effect. The Florida Forest Service reported on Wednesday morning that 95 wildfires covering some 28,369 acres were burning on lands under its jurisdiction. Twenty-eight of those fires were deemed major, covering 100 acres or more. The state also reported that three major wildfires were burning on federal lands within Florida. Those fires covered an estimated 85,896 acres.

With wildfire concerns elevated across much of the state, more counties had joined those with active burn bans by Wednesday morning. Residents of the following counties in the Tampa Bay area and nearby will find outdoor burning, campfires, fireworks and other burns off limits until further notice:

• Pasco
• Polk
• Manatee
• Sarasota
• Hernando
• Charlotte

Manatee County is the latest to join the list. Its county commission voted Tuesday to enact a seven-day ban on outdoor burning.

To see where the active wildfires had been reported as of 7:30 a.m. April 26, check out the graphic below provided by the Florida Forest Service:

For more information on wildfires, county burn bans and fire dangers, visit the state’s website.

Photo of a brush fire burning along State Road 54 in the New Port Richey area on Tuesday, courtesy of Pasco County Fire Rescue