VIDEO: Nevada could be headed for an elevated wildfire threat in 2026. “The recipe is there for a pretty bad year or that potential,” said August Isernhagen, wildland division chief with TMFR. Crews were busy across the West Coast in 2024, including Nevada’s Davis Fire and California’s Park Fire.
Wildfire activity in 2025 was mild, but Isernhagen said 2026 is shaping up differently for a few reasons.
“It’s a unique scenario that I don’t remember during my career, where we had about average rainfall or moisture and [precipitation], which helps the grass grow in the valleys. And next to no snowpack in the mountains, which causes the forest to become more water stressed earlier in the year,” Isernhagen said.
That combination allowed more fine fuels, including shrubs, to grow across the region, it’s allowing them to dry out quicker.
Isernhagen said it could also shift when large fires become more likely.
