Rain Season Fails to Put Out Wildfire Fears

CRAWFORD. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. MOST YEARS BY THE TIME WE REACH THE AUGUST THIS SUMMER, RAINY SEASON IS ENOUGH TO QUELL MOST WILDFIRES. BUT THAT HAS NOT BEEN THE CASE THIS YEAR. THE HOPE WAS THAT THE RAINY SEASON WOULD DELIVER MUCH NEEDED PRECIPITATION AND PROVIDE MONTHS OF SATURATION TO SOAK THE GROUND. HOWEVER, 2026 HAS BEEN NEARLY AS DRY AS LAST YEAR AND INCREASES THE RISK OF MORE WILDFIRES THROUGHOUT THE REGION. WGCU SENIOR ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTER TOM BAYLISS JOINS US NOW WITH MORE. AND TOM, YOU'VE BEEN TRACKING THE DROUGHT SINCE IT BEGAN AFFECTING SOUTHWEST FLORIDIANS BACK IN JANUARY OF 2025. AND I KNOW WHAT THAT TIME. YOU ADMISSION THAT THE PINE TREES IN THE WOODS WERE AS DRY AS MATCHSTICKS. WHAT'S YOUR CONCERN THIS YEAR? >> LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME. >> THE DROUGHT IN FLORIDA HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR ABOUT 6 MONTHS. >> THIS YEAR, EARLY RAINS FELL IN PLACES LIKE GORDA, THE CITIES AND COUNTIES THAT HAD BEEN CAUTIOUS IN THE FACE OF LOWERING WATER LEVELS AND DRY SOILS. THEY STARTED DROPPING BURN BANS THAT KEPT THEIR RESIDENTS FROM RISKY OUTSIDE BURNING AND THAT WHEN IT COMES TO DROUGHT AND WILDFIRE IN FLORIDA, IT'S NOT GOOD. >> IF THE TROPICS GOING ACCORDING TO PLAN, WHICH WOULD BE REDUCED ACTIVITY ACROSS THE WESTERN PART OF THE BASIN. THEN DROUGHT SHOULD INCREASE. FIRE ACTIVITY SHOULD INCREASE DURING THE FALL, WHICH IS A BIT UNUSUAL. AND FLORIDA. >> LAST SUMMER IT APPEARED THE RAINY SEASON WAS ON TRACK THIS YEAR, TOO. HEAVY RAINS FELL EARLY AND OFTEN IN SOME PLACES COMMON SENSE. LOCAL WATERING RESTRICTIONS WERE CANCELED. BURN BANS ALLOWED TO EXPIRE THE SAME IS HAPPENING THIS SUMMER, EVEN THOUGH LAST YEAR, THE EARLY RAINS SLOWED, LINKIN GROUNDWATER LEVELS FELL AGAIN, SOIL TRIED FROM FORT LAUDERDALE TO FORT MYERS BY THE END OF MAY. AIRBOAT OPERATORS HAD TO QUIT OFFERING RIDES BECAUSE THERE WAS NO WATER LEFT IN THEIR PART OF THE EVERGLADES. BY JULY TEMPERATURE. RECORDS WERE SHATTERED. AND FORT MYERS AND NAPLES THE MIDSUMMER HEAT WAVES AT 55 DAILY. HIGH TEMPERATURE RECORDS REGIONALLY. THE MOST EVER. THIS YEAR, TOO HIGH TEMPERATURE RECORDS HAVE BEEN SET IN FORT MYERS. AND ANOTHER RUN OF DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE SET WIN 27 DAYS IN JULY. TOP 90 DEGREES. LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME WATERING RESTRICTIONS AND BURN BANS WERE RESTARTED AND FIREFIGHTERS GATHERED IN NAPLES TO WARN THE 2026 WAS SHAPING UP TO BE A WILDFIRE SEASON. FEW FLORIDIANS HAD SEEN. NOT 3 MONTHS LATER. WILDFIRES STARTED IN THE BIG CYPRESS NATIONAL PRESERVE. ONE FIRE IN FEBRUARY, GREW FROM A LIGHTNING STRIKE TO ABOUT 25,000 ACRES IN 2 DAYS. WHETHER ENOUGH RAIN FALLS LATER THIS YEAR FOR LONG ENOUGH AND IN THE RIGHT PLACES TO QUENCH THE DROUGHT REMAINS TO BE SEEN. WHAT IS LIKELY IS KNOW AS PREDICTION LAST WEEK THAT THE FORMING AL NINO HAS BEEN SUPPRESSING HURRICANE ACTIVITY IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN. AND IT WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO. BUT NO PUSHED BACK BY 2 MONTHS. THE TIME WHEN NINA WILL BRING ITS RAINS, GIVING THAT MUCH MORE TIME FOR THE HOT, DRY WEATHER TO SPARK WILDFIRES >> WHAT MAKES THIS EL NINO EVENT SO UNUSUAL IS THAT IT'S EXPECTED TO BE SO STRONG. THERE'S NOTHING REALLY TO COMPARE IT TO. THERE'S NO ANALOGIES AND THE METEOR WATCH OCCULT WORLD. SO WE REALLY ARE GOING BY. GUESSES BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THAT HISTORICAL BACKGROUND IN TERMS OF HOW STRONG THIS EVENT US. SO WE REALLY DON'T KNOW LIKE MAYBE A STRONG EL NINO EVENT. SHE DO IS COMPLETELY OPPOSITE OF THE PREVIOUS STRONG GROUNDING EVENTS. YOU KNOW, WE DON'T KNOW HOW I DO EXACTLY PLAY OUT. >> TOM, DO WE HAVE ANY IDEA ABOUT HOW MUCH LAND WAS ACTUALLY BURNED? >> YES, JUST ABOUT 275,000 ACRES HAVE BURNED ACROSS THE STATE, WHICH IS TRIPLE THE AMOUNT OF THE ANNUAL AVERAGE. AND IT'S JUST AUGUST. THANK YOU FOR YOUR UPDATE. APPRECIATE IT.