Considered by many to be an extreme fire season, the Fall of 2024 showed a significant uptick in wildfire activity in the 20-state Eastern Area (EA). Some geographic areas recorded more fire activity in the Fall of 2024 than any other fall fire season in their history. But how significant was this fire season in comparison to historical data? This Storymap illustrates how the Fall 2024 fire season compares with historical data in the 20-state EA. Scroll through the Storymap to learn about the EA wildfire organization, the significance of the 2024 Fall fire season, and what it could mean for the future.

Some of the largest and most destructive fires that have occurred in history were in the EA states. This contradicts modern biases that only western states have had large historic fires. Although record keeping was limited to local eye witnesses of fire survivors reported in local newspapers at the time, these were significant landscape altering fire events that dramatically impacted local communities. Areas burned and property lost in these fires were significant, but may not reflect the true nature of how destructive these fires were. It's important to note that the most prominent fires made the history books, but in almost every large fire event recorded in the EA states, there were many other large on-going fires that accompanied the main fire event. These fires were also large and destructive but may not have received as much media attention, if any. In nearly every scenario with these large historic fires they were preceded by a dry, hot summer illustrating the significance of the fall fire season in the EA states.

The timeline below show areas of drought expansion in the EA due to lack of precipitation during the fall months of 2024. The U.S. Drought Monitor legend to the right shows drought intensity categories (Click the U.S. Drought Monitor thumbnail images to enlarge).

The future of EA fires remains uncertain, but if history teaches us anything it's that there will be more fire on the landscape. Most researchers and fire managers agree that the EA is primed to see more fire activity in the future, especially considering a changing climate. It's unlikely we'll see the massive conflagrations of the past; land management has changed and so have the forests, from intensive overharvest leading to volatile fuel build-up to passive management resulting in more fire-resistant species composition. The future of EA fires may very well come down to what people decide. Fire will happen on the landscape, it's inevitable, but the question is what kind of fire is acceptable, if any. Do we stomp out every fire? Or do we learn, or perhaps re-learn, how to use the power of fire to fight the fires we don't want?

 Austin Davidson