2015 Washington wildfires

2015 Washington wildfires
Smoke plume over the Wolverine Fire on August 4
Statistics
Total fires	1,541
Total area	1,005,423 acres (406,880 ha)
Cost	$253 million
Fatalities	3
Non-fatal injuries	4
Season
← 2014 2016 →

The 2015 wildfire season was the largest in Washington state history, with more than one million acres (400,000 ha; 1,600 sq mi) burning across the state from June to September. As many as 3,000 firefighters including 800 Washington National Guard members were deployed to fight the fires. The 17th Field Artillery Brigade of the United States Army also deployed 200 soldiers from Joint Base Lewis–McChord to help fight the fires.

On August 21, President Barack Obama declared the fires a federal emergency. Because of the enormous extent of the fire activity, for the first time in Washington state history, officials asked residents to volunteer to assist in fighting the wildfires. On August 24, the Washington Department of Natural Resources announced the Okanogan Complex fire had become the largest fire complex in Washington State history.

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources called the season the "worst-ever" in the state's history.

June 2015 was a remarkably hot month for the state of Washington, with average temperatures between 4 and 9 °F (2 and 5 °C) above normal conditions, setting new records.

By June 23, there had already been 313 wildfires across the state.

Governor Jay Inslee issued a proclamation on June 26, declaring a state of emergency to exist in all Washington state counties, implementing the Washington State Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, and ordering deployment of National Guard and other organized militia for incident-related service assistance, all because of the predicted risk of wildfires in the wake of significantly drier-than-average weather in June. The Commissioner of Public Lands Peter J. Goldmark, head of the Washington Department of Natural Resources, issued an updated burn ban to the one issued June 22, as the earlier ban was superseded by the Governor's proclamation. The Commissioner's prohibition of campfires in state forests, state parks and state forestlands until September 30, 2015, was issued June 26, 2015.