Fire
Fire and the Mark Twain National Forest
Wildland fire can be a friend and a foe. In the right place at the right time, wildland fire can create many environmental benefits, such as reducing grass, brush, and trees that can fuel large and severe wildfires and improving wildlife habitat. In the wrong place at the wrong time, wildfires can wreak havoc, threatening lives, homes, communities, and natural and cultural resources.
The Mark Twain National Forest has a strong wildland firefighting program that plays a vital role in managing the natural resources within the Forest's boundaries.
Report a Wildfire
If you believe you encounter a wildfire, get to safety and report it by phone as soon as possible by calling 911 and they will route it appropriately.
Wildfires may also be reported by calling (866) 800-8595
Where to get current fire information
Websites and maps showing the most current fire and prescribed fire information for the Mark Twain National Forest.
Preventing, Mitigating, and Managing Fire
Fire Management
Fire personnel respond to wildfires, preventing them from becoming catastrophic blazes.
The Forest utilizes fire through planned prescribed burns as a tool to promote healthy woodlands, glades, and other ecosystem types across the six Ranger Districts.
Fire Prevention
Every year, on average, human-caused wildfires account for approximately 85% of wildfires in the United States. Though most of these fires are caused by accidents, many of them can be prevented. Educate yourself on how you can prevent wildfires and mitigate the impacts of wildfires on your community.
Firefighters
Veterans Crew
The Mark Twain National Forest Veteran Crew consists of former military service members and is based out of Cassville, Missouri. Learn what they do and how to become a member of the Vet Crew.
FireHire
The USDA Forest Service hires temporary, permanent, and apprenticeship wildland firefighting positions. Join the Forest Service and those who serve to protect our national forests, communities, and natural resources.
Visiting Firefighters
If coming to Mark Twain National Forest on a fire assignment, you will want to check in through Missouri Iowa Interagency Coordination Center (MOCC).
Phone: 573-341-7449
Partnerships
The Forest Service doesn’t – and can’t – manage wildland fire alone. Instead, the agency works closely with other federal, tribal, state, and local partners.
Partnerships are more important than ever as the wildland fire management environment has profoundly changed over the past few decades.
Current partners include (but are not limited to):
- Federal partners such as Department of Interior - National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
- State partners such as Iowa Department of Natural Resources and Missouri Department of Conservation
- Other USDA partners like Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and Mingo Job Corps
- Local Fire Departments across 29 counties, including volunteer fire departments
- Private landowners through Wyden Agreements
- Organizations through Agreements, such as the Wild Turkey Federation
For information on how you can partner with the Mark Twain National Forest visit our Partnership information page.
National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy
Longer fire seasons; bigger fires and more acres burned on average each year; more extreme fire behavior; and wildfire suppression operations in the wildland urban interface (WUI) have become the norm.
In addition to on-going partnerships, to address these challenges, the Forest Service and its other federal, tribal, state, and local partners have developed and are implementing a National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy that has three key components: Resilient Landscapes, Fire Adapted Communities, and Safe and Effective Wildfire Response.
Resilient Landscapes
Healthy, thriving ecosystems are less vulnerable to extreme wildfires that can devastate watersheds, destroy wildlife habitat, and risk lives. Healthy ecosystems can adapt to climate change, invasive species, and insect infestations. Unfortunately, keeping fire out of wildlands has left forests and grasslands crowded with flammable vegetation. Fire seasons are becoming longer and droughts and insect infestations worse. Whole landscapes are now vulnerable to devastating, extreme wildfires.
Fire Adapted Communities
More than 70,000 communities and 46 million homes are at risk from wildfire in the wildland urban interface (WUI) – where undeveloped wildland and the built environment meet. Over the last ten years, more than 35,000 structures were destroyed by wildfires – an average of 3,500 a year.
Safe and Effective Wildfire Response
Each year, an average of about 7,500 wildfires burn an average of approximately 1.5 million acres on National Forests and Grasslands. Over the last ten years, just over half (54%) of these wildfires have been caused by humans while the rest (46%) have been ignited by lightning.