'La Nina' sets warming record, raises drought and fire concerns

There were 18,805 wildfires in the United States in 1999

March 10, 2000
Web posted at: 10:01 p.m. EST (0301 GMT)

ATLANTA (CNN) -- The warm, dry weather associated with the "La Nina" weather phenomenon brought the warmest winter in U.S. history, and could bring a rough fire season to the Southeast United States, according to two separate U.S. government reports released Friday.

The National Climatic Data Center reports all-time record high average temperatures for the December-through-February season throughout the United States.

The 50-state average temperature during the three-month period was 38.4 degrees Fahrenheit, six-tenths of a degree above the previous record that was set last year. The NCDC also measured the season as the 16th-driest U.S. winter in 105 years of record-keeping.

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Only areas of the northern Rockies and Midwest experienced relatively wet winter weather, with many areas -- especially the Southeast -- well below average rain and snowfall.

La Nina is the nickname for a weather phenomenon where unusually cool water in the Pacific Ocean affects weather conditions on a nearly worldwide basis. La Nina often brings warmer, dry weather to most of the United States.

The high average temperatures and low average precipitation marks this winter were set in spite of a few notable periods of cold weather, and an unprecedented heavy January snowstorm that blanketed several Southeastern states.

This marked the third consecutive year that record warmth was recorded in the United States during the winter months. Since 1980, more than two-thirds of U.S. winters have been warmer than average, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

The reports heightened concerns that La Nina-inspired drought could plague the Southeast this spring and summer.

The U.S. Forest Service reinforced that concern by issuing a 13-state "fire advisory" for a region stretching from Texas to Virginia.

There have already been 14,151 wildfires across the United States so far this year, compared to 18,805 for all of 1999.

Some 13,186 fires across the Southern states have charred 258,690 acres.

Brush fires in Georgia and Florida have already made their mark, including a smoke-induced traffic pileup near Wellborn in northern Florida which claimed three lives on Wednesday. The Southeast fire season runs from mid-March to mid-May.

The Forest Service also attributed the fire advisory to drought brought on by La Nina conditions.

The U.S. Commerce and Agriculture departments are set to release a drought forecast on Monday, with expectations that it will raise new drought and fire concerns. Similar "La Nina" drought conditions last spring harmed farmers throughout the Eastern United States.

In a La Nina year, winter temperatures are warmer than normal in the Southeast United States, and colder than normal in the Northwest.

By contrast, the "El Nino" phenomenon features unusually warm Pacific Ocean temperatures. Winter temperatures are colder than normal in the Southeast United States, and warmer than normal in the Northwest.

An El Nino phenomenon during the winter of 1997-98 brought destructive storms to the U.S. West Coast. Since its departure, world weather systems have been dominated by La Nina.

The current La Nina system is also believed to have been responsible for the rainy conditions and catastrophic flooding in Mozambique.

While "La Nina" rarely lasts longer than two years, the current system shows little sign of letting up.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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National Fire News - 2000 Wildfire Statistics
National Climatic Data Center

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