A Look Back at 2020 

What will 2021 bring?

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For many parts of the Western US, 2020 brought the worst fire season on record. By October, fires in California alone had burned more surface area than is contained in the state of Connecticut. In total, more than 10,200,000 acres across the Western states were scorched and 13,887 structures were destroyed.

California & Colorado

STATE HIGHLIGHTS

Winter drought conditions, which started mild in most of the west, have continued to worsen. As of April, extreme and exceptional drought conditions are present in California, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and the Western portion of Texas. The arid conditions have led to very low moisture levels in vegetation much earlier in the season than normal.

Compared to 2020 (left), 2021 has been significantly dryer. Drought strongly correlates to difficult fire seasons.

Source: Drought.gov

According to the National Interagency Fire Center

Total Economic Losses Over