AMES, Iowa — You might have noticed a haziness in the skies this week as wildfires rage across the Rocky Mountain area, in western parts of the country and up in Canada.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources Fire Program has dispatched firefighters to areas in the United States to help with fire management efforts.
Staff with the Iowa DNR and Iowa-based firefighters are on the ground in Colorado and South Dakota while other agency staff is helping the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fire engines in Wyoming. An Iowa DNR engine and crew are in southern California. Support specialists and EMTs from Iowa are helping in northern California and Oregon.
Over the past few seasons, wetter conditions in western states has resulted in lots of vegetation regrowth. Once this starts to dry out, it gives ample fuel for wildfires to keep spreading.
“Iowa has gotten a reprieve from several years of drought conditions with heavy rainfalls the past month, but the western United States has seen just the opposite,” Ryan Harr, Iowa DNR Fire Program supervisor, said in a press release. “After a year or two of generally wet conditions, much of the region is drying out rapidly through the early summer.”
Harr said the rest of the 2024 wildfire season will likely be busy, and he anticipates the Iowa DNR will continue to provide firefighter and support staff personnel throughout the summer and early fall.
Wildland firefighters undergo rigorous training and must meet annual physical fitness standards to qualify for national assignments. Every year, the Iowa DNR certifies around 10 of its own staff and about 35 Iowans from partner agencies, volunteer fire departments and other organizations to be available to respond to wildfires nationwide.
For more information on the Iowa DNR Fire Program, you can contact Harr at (712) 250-0818 or ryan.harr@dnr.iowa.gov.
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