DCNR Reports 1,371 Wildfires Burned 2,981 Acres In 2021, Down Slightly From 2020

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources reported there were 2,981 acres burned in 1,371 wildfires during 2021, down from 1,507 wildfires and 3,033 acres burned in 2020.

The cost to extinguish the 2021 wildfires was $497,086, up slightly from 2020’s $466,544.

Pennsylvania’s 2021 wildfire season started off with a large number of fires in March, but more acres burned in April.   Dry conditions in the spring were prevalent in northwestern counties. 

The two largest wildfires of the year occurred simultaneously in Warren County in April.

Summer and Fall wildfire activity was somewhat lessened, especially compared with last summer. 

DCNR Employees and volunteers conducted 230 wildfire prevention activities and events over the course of 2021. About 1,500 volunteer hours were contributed during these events.

2021 was again an active year for wildfires throughout the nation. Assistance provided to DCNR’s  partners in 14 other states:

-- 1 Incident Management Team sent to Idaho

-- 6 Twenty-Person Hand Crews

-- 1 Wildfire Suppression Module

-- 2 Type 6 Wildland Fire Engines

-- 84 Single-Resource Overhead Assignments

-- 242 Total Resources Assigned

Click Here for a copy of the full 2021 report.  Click Here for past wildfire statistics.

Visit DCNR’s Wildfire webpage to learn more about wildfire prevention, Forest Fire Wardens, Resources for Volunteer Firefighters and more.

(Photo: Camp Tuckahoe wildfire in York County burned 143 acres.)

[Posted: February 11, 2022]  PA Environment Digest