Idaho leads the U.S. in large wildfires, second in acres burned

BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — As of Sept 11., Idaho is one of the smokiest states in the country, largely due to wildfires and wind patterns.

This year, Idaho leads the nation in number of large fires. The Gem State has 33 active large wildfires. Montana sits at second with 22.

Oregon has the most amount of acres burned however, with 288,653. Idaho sits second with 245,414 acres burned.

Idaho's largest wildfire, the Moose Fire has burned 125,993 acres. It's the second largest wildfire in the country, behind the Double Creek Fire in Oregon (149,944 acres burned).

Also in Oregon, the Cedar Creek Fire (0% contained) continues to explode. While the fire was just 18,000 acres last week, it is now nearly 86,000 acres. If the current expansion rates holds, it will likely pass the Moose Fire in size, knocking the Moose Fire to the third largest in the country this year.

As for air quality, part of Idaho's Nez Perce National Forest is currently in the "very unhealthy" category. It's one of two places in country dealing with very unhealthy air at the moment. Clearwater, Idaho, currently sits at 237 on the air quality index on airnow.gov.

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