Jefferson County officials warn of elevated fire season

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, June 2, 2026

PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County officials noted that low snow pack, combined with projections for hotter-than-average temperatures could lead to an elevated fire season.

Willie Bence, the director of the county’s Department of Emergency Management, presented the topic Monday to the Board of Jefferson County Commissioners as a part of a monthly program that was simulcast on KPTZ 91.9 FM. The program also included a public health update.

“Right now, the National Weather Service is reporting some pretty significant odds that we are going to be much warmer than normal with below-average precipitation,” Bence said.

June, July and August are estimated to have a 60 percent to 70 percent chance that temperatures will be above average, he said.

“That is in the aggregate,” he added. “That’s the climate as a whole, so that’s not guaranteeing major heat waves. We may still see what we’re seeing now, a few warm days, a few cooler days.”

The projections have officials preparing for what could be a challenging fire season.

“On the whole, there are very strong signals that the summer is going to be a significantly warm one, as well as a dry one, which, combined with our low snow pack, does not bode well for our fire season,” Bence said.

Fire danger is expected to ramp up through June, and the fire season is expected to be in full swing in July and August and moving forward, Bence said.

The county fire marshal and district fire chiefs will continue to discuss raising the fire danger level, which is already at moderate, Bence said.

Residents should begin considering where their fire danger might come from, depending on their location, Bence said. He advised that residents should identify at least two evacuation routes and where they would go in the case of evacuation.

Bence also covered Emergency Management’s fire evacuation levels.

Level 1 means “get ready.” While it does not indicate an immediate threat, residents should start listening to KPTZ 91.9 FM and checking on social media.

Level 2, “get set,” means people should be prepared to evacuate at any given time.

“If you have mobility issues, if you have animals, if there’s a reason that you may need a little bit of extra time to evacuate, we really recommend folks leave their home then,” Bence said. “At level 2, an evacuation order may happen at any time.”

If a “go” order is issued at level 3, it means officials have deemed a situation imminently dangerous. Residents who receive such an order should evacuate as fast as possible, Bence said.

The announcements are made via the county’s Nixle text alert system, KPTZ 91.9 FM and by the emergency alert system during large evacuations. Similar to amber alerts, those will come through as push notifications on smartphones, Bence said.

To sign up for Nixle, text JEFFCODEM to 888777 or sign up on the Jefferson County Emergency Management website.

Following Bence’s presentation, Dr. Allison Berry, the public health officer for Clallam and Jefferson counties, provided an update on Monday.

While rates of emergency room visits and hospitalizations are low, Jefferson County Public Health has seen an increase in COVID-19 activity in wastewater.

“That can be because of an influx of human beings,” Berry said. “This time of year, when it gets really nice, a lot of people like to come see Port Townsend.”

It’s too early to say if it will form a trend or just be a blip, Berry said.

Berry said in an email that Clallam County does not take wastewater samples, but trends are generally consistent across the Olympic Peninsula.

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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@peninsuladailynews.com.