Map Shows 11 States Most At Risk For Wildfires This Weekend

Hot, dry weather returns to the central U.S. this weekend, putting 11 states at an increased risk for wildfires as flames continue to rage in the Texas Panhandle.

Widespread wildfires consuming thousands of acres began on Monday throughout the Lone Star state. The Smokehouse Creek Fire, the largest of the blazes, has since grown to scorch more than 1 million acres. At least one person has been killed and thousands of livestock have died. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has since issued a disaster declaration.

Officials have not determined an official cause of the fires, but earlier this week, red-flag warnings were in place in multiple states across the U.S. The red-flag warnings advised people to avoid outdoor burning as the weather conditions were perfect for spreading fires. Red-flag warnings returned to three states as of Friday morning, and up to 11 states faced an increased risk of fires according to a report by AccuWeather. The report included a map of the at-risk areas.

The states are New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and Missouri.

"The combination of the warm, windy air and the dry ground could bring a heightened risk for any fire that sparks to spread quickly and any ongoing blaze to potentially breach containment lines," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Courtney Travis said in the report.

AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham told Newsweek that the highest-risk area will be from eastern New Mexico into the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, eastern Colorado and western Kansas.

"That's where we are expecting the very dry and windiest conditions and also very low humidity levels," Buckingham said. "If anything were to spark up, it would spread very rapidly similar to what occurred just a few days ago."

The dry weather this winter has fueled the fire risk in some Plains states, where precipitation was less than 50 percent of historical average in February. Meanwhile, temperatures have been high, up to 14 degrees above average throughout the month.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a red-flag warning for New Mexico, Colorado and Nebraska. A fire weather watch has been issued for several states as well, including in the Texas Panhandle where the wildfires are currently raging.

"A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly," the warning said. "A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior."

Most of the fire weather watches will remain in place throughout the weekend.

Warm weather also will return to the Midwest this weekend, spiking temperatures by as much as 40 F above their point midweek during a quick cold front. Minneapolis could experience temperatures as high as 65 F by Sunday, AccuWeather reported, whereas the city was at 20 F earlier this week.

The abnormal warmth is expected to impact most of the central U.S., as well as much of the Midwest.