2021 wildfire season: severe drought conditions in western U.S.

I am sure that most of you are aware of the severe drought conditions in most of the western United States coupled with historic heat wave, some say the worst drought in at least 20 years in places. I am not here to report on these conditions as many media outlets and related news and wildland fire news on the internet are doing so. However, here are a couple of articles that I found today for you: ABC News and The Hill

I am here because all in the wildland firefighting community, whether you be on the ground or in the air, to know that I am paying attention. 

I am here because what I have read in the coverage of the severe drought in the western U.S. scares me as the summer wildfire season is well under way. 

I am here because I want to tell my wildland firefighter friends that I can not imagine what is like to fight a wildfire in extreme heat. 

I am here because it is my prayer that all of you who are wildland firefighters whether you are on the ground, in the air, and various and asundry support staff are safe. I care.

I believe that one picture is worth a thousand words. Here are three images of significant wildfire potential outlook for July, August, and September from Predictive Services at the National Interagency Fire Center and two images showing drought conditions, one is the most recent drought monitor is the seasonal drought outlook from the Climate Prediction Center. In all cases, I am sharing the most recent images. These sites are updated with new information as appropriate so if you are coming here sometime in the future what you see at these sites may be different.