A photo of a wildfire shared by the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry in April 2026 post warning about the "dry conditions and high winds are fueling rapid fire spread." (Photo courtesy of Maine Dept. of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry)
Typically, Maine has fewer than a hundred wildfires throughout July and August, but this year it’s close to triple that.
As of Wednesday, the state has already seen 280 fires since July 1, said Terri Teller, a forest fire prevention specialist for the Maine Forest Service.
“We haven’t had a year like this in a long time in Maine,” she said.
Without much measurable rain and dry soil conditions, the number of fires has ticked up dramatically. For the past two and a half weeks, southern and central Maine have been at an elevated danger, Teller said, adding that the northern part of the state has been “luckier” with more precipitation.
A drought monitor from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows one million Maine residents living in drought conditions as of this week. Most of the state is listed as being in “abnormally dry” to “severe drought” conditions.
Though Teller said she couldn’t confirm that number herself, it tracks with the state’s core population centers being at a higher wildfire risk. Roughly 95% of fires each year are caused by humans, she said, whether that be through open burning, vehicle fires that spread or other equipment malfunctions.
The timing of this most recent dry spell has driven up the fire danger, Teller said. There seemed to be an average number of fires through mid-June, but once the regular rainfall stopped, the danger increased. And add to that the pleasant temperatures in recent days that have encouraged more outdoor recreation, which includes campfires.
This increase in wildfire activity comes on the brink of the state’s usual fall fire season, which runs from mid-September through October, Teller said.
“We are keeping a close eye on precipitation and how that will play out,” she said. “If we are already dry going into that season it may compound the activity we are seeing.”
More frequent, bigger fires
The 280 fires in the past two months have burned nearly 125 acres, which is less than an acre per fire, Teller said. While her team’s goal is to keep them as small as possible, more recent fires have exceeded one acre.
Last week, there was a 2.3 acre fire in Eliot from an improperly extinguished campfire in the woods. There’s also been a 30-acre fire in Baileyville, and several others that exceeded five acres, Teller said.
Windy conditions can cause fires to spread more, but Teller said the state hasn’t seen too many windy days — “That’s been a helpful factor for us.”
While her agency wasn’t expecting to have such an atypical year, Teller said it’s been ramping up resources as conditions have worsened in recent weeks. For example, she said the Forest Service has civilian firefighters available to help increase staffing.
Additionally, the agency usually has helicopters in Augusta and Old Town, but on the higher fire danger days that has increased to two in each location or shifting one to the northern region to better access remote areas.
What can be done
With the rain patterns out of their control, Teller said one of the biggest fire prevention tools at the state’s disposal is the online burn permit portal. State law requires a burn permit for any open debris burning throughout the state, but when fire danger is high that system gets shut down to reduce potential ignition sources.
Teller said local fire departments have been following suit by not offering handwritten permits in those circumstances. Additionally, some municipalities have gone a step further by utilizing local ordinances to restrict fires.
People are also advised to be mindful of the conditions by checking the daily fire danger, which is updated at 9 a.m. each day. For Wednesday, most of the state was under “high” fire danger.
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