Florida officials warn of busy wildfire season, urge residents to prepare

Floridians warned to be wildfire-ready

FOX 13's Evan Axelbank reports.

DOVER, Fla. - Florida's top agriculture official is warning residents to get ready for what could be an especially dangerous wildfire season.

What they're saying:

Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson and the Florida Forest Service say conditions are ripe for more fires than usual, with Florida’s peak wildfire months, April through June, just getting started. The National Interagency Fire Center has predicted an "above normal wildfire potential" across the state this spring.

Courtesy: Predictive Services, National Interagency Fire Center.

At a news conference in Hillsborough County on Thursday, Simpson highlighted advancements in technology – including drones and newer helicopters – that allow firefighters to be better equipped in their efforts to contain fast-moving flames.

"We have now a fleet of 10 helicopters," Simpson said. "You've seen them in action. We can go in and start putting fires out very quickly with some of that technology that we didn't have just a few years ago."

Rick Dolan, the head of the Florida Forest Service, said only 10 days without rain make conditions ripe for a fire.

"Those very windy days, you need to be mindful of those," said Dolan.

By the numbers:

Florida has already seen more than 1,000 wildfires burn over 51,000 acres since the start of the year, compared to just 550 at this point last year.

Several counties are under local burn bans, and some regions have faced Red Flag Warnings from the National Weather Service.

Just several weeks ago, a wildfire burned 45,000 acres in Dade County, closing the only way to get to the Keys and threatening an even bigger catastrophe.

U.S. Drought Monitor.

"A nuclear power plant was in the area. The racetrack was in area," said Simpson. "So we had very high strategic value targets for the state of Florida."

State officials say the worst was avoided, but there is no guarantee, not with a "very high" wildfire risk and dryer than usual conditions.

Simpson says the state will likely fight between 1,500 and 2,000 additional wildfires this season, with many caused by arson or backyard fires that spread.

What you can do:

Simpson says the top two causes are lightning and accidents.

"Please do not throw cigarettes out your window. Contain your backyard fires if you're going to have a fire pit. If you've got a barbecue, make sure it's thoroughly put out," Simpson said.

READ: Puppy, beaten beyond recognition, fighting for its life at Oviedo animal hospital

He also stressed reporting any visible smoke or flames, so crews can show up as soon as possible.

"If the public sees something, we need you to say something," Simpson said. "We need you to call. The earlier we can get on the fire and get it out, the better we have it. We take nothing for granted here."

Dig deeper:

Firefighters are making their dozer fleet more reliable by lowering their average age from 18 to 12 years, with a goal of under 10.

They're also doing 2 million acres of preventative burns, one-fifth of all the acres done nationwide.

"Last year, we were very fortunate to have excellent weather to do a lot of prescribed burning around the state and actually set records," said Dolan.

Follow FOX 13 on YouTube

The stakes of this battle were made all too clear just this year when the world watched California burn.

"We've seen what it's done out west," said Simpson. "And we certainly do not want to have an incident like that here."

What's next:

Florida Wildfire Awareness Week runs April 6–12, honoring the devastating 1998 fire season when more than 500,000 acres burned and hundreds of homes were lost.

Officials are encouraging residents to learn how to protect their property and communities by clicking here.

To track current wildfire activity, click here.

The Source: This story was written with information collected by FOX 13 reporters, a news conference on April 10, 2025 and additional information from the Florida Forest Service and National Interagency Fire Center.

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA: