Could Alabama Be Headed To A Record Wildfire Year?

2026 could become a record wildfire year in Alabama, but it depends on what happens between September and December — one of Alabama’s two peak fire seasons.

Spring and fall are the peak fire danger seasons in Alabama's woodlands, but the current high heat and dry conditions in South Alabama are bringing back the wildfire threat across Alabama already.

Currently, there are seven fires, down from eight yesterday.

The closest fire to West Alabama this morning is right on the Alabama-Mississippi state line just west of Lamar County

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As of today, all current wildfires but one in the state are listed as contained by the Alabama Forestry Commission.

The only active fire, which blazed up this morning, is a small one just off U.S. 431 near Seale in Bullock County.

The largest current fire in the state is a 253-acre blaze in extreme southern Washington County, just north of the Mobile County line.

A two-acre fire is located in extreme northeastern Cullman County, while on the southern end of the state, 81 acres are burning just west of Satsuma in Mobile County.

Two fires are also showing up on the AFC map. One is on three acres just west of Interstate 65 in central Escambia County. The other is less than an acre located in northern Barbour County in southeast Alabama.

2026 is already considered a high-fire year statewide. AFC statistics reveal more than 2,000 wildfires have already burned more than 30,000 acres.

In West Alabama, one of the largest fires this year so far has been the Williams Creek Fire in Perry and Chilton Counties, where 1,650 acres burned in April.

According to forestry experts, because Alabama entered summer with drier-than-normal vegetation, several counties are already under burn restrictions. And the forecast is for the fall 2026 fire season (Oct–Dec) to be more intense than the average year unless rainfall patterns shift.

The National Climate Center is currently forecasting higher than normal temperatures through September 11. The outlook for rainfall is 50-50 through October, encompassing two of the driest months of the year in Alabama.

To report a wildfire, dial: 1-800-392-5679.