According to the Alaska Interagency Coordination Center, six of the seven major wildfires in the Upper Susitna Valley occurred in the last 18 years. These fires were at least 100 acres in size. And there have been plenty of smaller fires in the Upper Valley too. The maps show wildfires of all sizes dating back to 1940.
International Arctic Research Center Alaska Climate Specialist Rick Thoman says many of the wildfires have gotten bigger in recent years.
“So when we look at the biggest fires that have occurred say north of Big Lake, more than 100-acre fires, what we see is nearly all of those are since the 1990s and beyond. The Sockeye Fire, McKinley Fire, very recent. When we go back into the 1980s, the 1970s, 1960s, we don’t see one. There was a 3,000-acre fire in the 1940s caused by the railroad to the north of Talkeetna.”
Put into perspective, the fires in the Upper Susitna Valley are much smaller than many north of the Alaska Range and points west. Thoman says chance plays a role in the wildfire season, but it’s also how that comes together with the weather that year.
“And with earlier snowmelt, with warmer springs and summers, and then the occasional drought like the 2019 extreme drought that provided the very dry conditions for the McKinley Fire. That warming, that drying is playing into when all the other ingredients come together supporting these big, fast-moving fires.”
As of today, there have now been six reported wildfires in the State this spring, all human-caused, all 100% contained, and all very small. One of those was located in the Mat-Su Valley.
The Alaska Department of Natural Resources updates the fire danger and posts any burn restrictions each day. Burn permits are required now and are available online.
