‘Uncharted Territory’ as Wildfire Fighting Adapts to Pandemic

Federal and state officials are scrambling to develop plans for how to fight the West’s wildfires during a pandemic, before a fire season forecast to be worse than normal flares up next month.

One thing is clear: The coronavirus will put a “hard stop” to the traditional way federal agencies attack wildfires, with large groups in close quarters, said Kerry Greene, public information officer for the U.S. Forest Service’s firefighting efforts.

With the 2020 fire season poised to be severe, numerous questions remain unanswered about how large crews of firefighters will move around the country when some states require ...