In the last 10 years, the total number of acres burned by significant wildfires has varied from year to year. In 2020, when dry lightning sparked an outbreak of wildfires across Northern California, more than 4.3 million acres burned, but in 2022 and 2023, only about 300,000 acres burned each year. On average, about 1.4 million acres burn a year.

Since 1993, seven of the 10 worst fire years in California, ranked by total acres burned, have occurred after drier-than-normal winters. By contrast, eight of the state’s 10 mildest fire years occurred after wetter-than-normal winters, according to an analysis by the Bay Area News Group and Golden Gate Weather Services, a Half Moon Bay company.

Generally, wet winters lower wildfire risk and dry winters increase it. Northern California received much more rain and snow this winter than Southern California.

Experts say recent changes at FEMA, NOAA and the U.S. Forest Service could make a challenging fire season in California even worse.

Kavya Beheraj/Axios Hot, dry and windy weather that fuels wildfires is becoming more common in San Diego County and much of the western U.S. amid climate change, a new analysis finds. Why it matters: What used to be several months of fire season is stretching in some places into a yearlong phenomenon,

The New York Times headline is “California’s Wildfires Could Be Brutal This Summer,” That means more large wildfires

Temperatures are heating up in California and the warm summer months could create a particularly lethal wildfire season, experts have warned