National Preparedness Level Drops to PL4 as Cooler Temperatures Ease Pacific Northwest Fire Threat

The National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) in Boise, Idaho, announced that the National Preparedness Level has been lowered from Level 5 — the highest possible — to National Preparedness Level 4 (PL 4), effective September 4, 2026, at 7:30 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time. The downgrade reflects improving fire weather conditions across multiple geographic areas, increased availability of nationally shared firefighting resources, and a significant decline in resource orders flowing through the NICC.

What the Level Change Means

The National Preparedness Level is a five-tier scale used by the NICC to communicate the overall demand for national firefighting resources. A Preparedness Level 5 — which the nation reached during the peak of the 2026 fire season — indicates maximum national resource mobilization with most shared assets committed to active incidents. At PL 4, demand has eased enough that some resources are becoming available, though the system remains at significantly elevated mobilization.

Even at PL 4, nearly 17,812 firefighters and support personnel remain deployed nationally, working to contain 78 large fires burning across 16 states. The Pacific Northwest alone accounts for 34 of those fires — 13 in Washington, 12 in Idaho, and 9 in Oregon.

What Drove the August Peak: The PDS Red Flag Event

The shift in preparedness level follows an exceptionally dangerous fire weather pattern that dominated much of August 2026 in the PNW. In early August, the National Weather Service issued a Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Red Flag Warning — the highest fire weather designation available — across parts of eastern Washington and Oregon. That event was characterized by:

Persistent strong wind gusts of 35–55+ mph in exposed locations
Relative humidity dropping to single digits in the most vulnerable areas
Temperatures in the upper 90s to low 100s across eastern Washington and Oregon
Critically dry fine fuels after weeks without meaningful precipitation

That weather event directly triggered the explosive growth of the Spokane Complex Fire and accelerated spread on multiple eastern Oregon fires, including the Hagen, McCully, and Austin fires.

Pacific Northwest Outlook Improving

NIFC meteorologists report that showers with cooler temperatures are spreading across the Pacific Northwest, the western Northern Rockies, and Northern California, continuing to reduce large fire potential in those areas. Fire managers are using this weather window to aggressively improve containment lines across all active fires before any potential return of dry conditions.

Remaining Hot Spots Nationally

Despite improvement in the Northwest, fire weather remains dangerous in other parts of the country. Moderate to critical fire conditions persist across parts of Wyoming and eastern Montana, the Southern Plains, and the Mississippi Valley. Nationally, 78 large fires are burning across more than 3.7 million active acres.

2026 Season in Context