HELENA — With emergency crews already responding to wildfires in western Montana, authorities say they’re getting ready for what could be a more active fire season in the state.
“It’s got some challenges forthcoming,” said Dan Borsum, a federal Predictive Services meteorologist for the Northern Rockies Geographic Area.
(Watch the video for more on what leaders are expecting for Montana's fire season.)
State, federal and local leaders gathered in Helena Monday for Gov. Greg Gianforte’s annual fire season briefing. It was held at the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation’s Fire Aviation Support Facility – where several of the helicopters stored there over the winter were already gone, fighting the Banana Lake Fire near Plains.
Borsum said, in light of lingering drought in western Montana, signs that July and August could be hot and dry, and a quickly melting snowpack, the state could be at higher fire danger this year – after three below-average years. In 2022 and 2023, only about 130,000 acres burned per year in the state. In 2024, it was closer to 360,000, but around half of that was in a single fire: the Remington Fire in southeastern Montana.
“It does look like this summer should be a greater number than those, unfortunately, so be ready for that for this fire season,” said Borsum.
He said the most significant fire potential could begin in western Montana in July, then spread to central and eastern Montana in August and September.
During his time as governor, Gianforte has repeatedly called for agencies to emphasize quick responses to wildfires and more active forest management. On Monday, representatives from several of the agencies in attendance – including the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management – said they were committed to the same goals.
All agencies said cooperation would be key going into the fire season.
“We're all in this together, with resources and personnel from the partners gathered around today constituting a critical part of our response strategy,” said Ben South, a deputy regional forester for the USFS Northern Region.
To get ready for the season, DNRC has been working to upgrade its aviation capabilities. They’re adding a modernized tail to their helicopters, which helps them operate more efficiently.
“There's more built-in safety margins for excess power and increased capacity, and overall it improves the safety of flying the aircraft,” said Tal Williams, chief pilot for DNRC’s air operations.
The department also has fixed-wing aircraft used as “spotter planes,” where crews fly over the site of a lightning storm or other event to try to identify possible fire starts. Eventually, they hope to fit those planes with thermal detectors, so they can identify hotspots even earlier.
“The quicker we can find a fire, the quicker we can respond to it and get folks onto the ground to put the fire out,” said deputy state forester Wyatt Frampton.
Frampton said DNRC is up to about 180 frontline firefighters on staff – about 30 more than they had last year. In addition, he said House Bill 127 – passed by the Legislature earlier this year – provided additional money in the state fire fund, allowing the department to contract with private companies to make additional helicopters, air tankers and hand crews available if needed.
Leaders had one more reminder for the public during Monday’s briefing: Most wildfires in Montana are human-caused.
“Each one of you can help prevent avoidable fires by recreating responsibly and following fire restrictions, and by preparing your homes and properties – by removing fuels within 200 feet of your home, to reduce wildfire risk,” Gianforte said.
You can find more information on preventing wildfires, as well as updates on current fires and fire restrictions, on DNRC’s MTFireInfo.org website.
