A forest fire, exacerbated by drought, in Florida reached 25,000 acres (over 10,000 hectares) on Tuesday in the Everglades, one of the main natural areas in the southern United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned. The 'National Fire' burning in Florida has now exploded to a size of 25,000 acres. The forest fire started yesterday in the Big Cypress National Reserve,' NOAA indicated in an advisory. As of this morning, the fire had 0% containment and was growing in Collier County, west of Miami, near the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge in the Everglades. This area of wetlands spanning over 610,000 hectares is home to more than 20 endangered species, such as these felines, crocodiles, and alligators. The National Weather Service (NWS) alerted residents to 'low visibility due to smoke density.' Furthermore, the flames are spreading amid 'severe' or 'extreme' drought conditions in South Florida, the Miami NWS office reported, where there is a water shortage alert, and dozens of counties, including Collier, have banned campfires for fear of wildfires. 'The elevated fire behavior is a concern for South Florida this afternoon as 1) the combination of widespread severe to extreme drought across the region and 2) very dry air could serve as a basis for a larger fire,' the agency stated in a forecast. The Everglades have also gained notoriety for the opening last year of the 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center, which is about 64 kilometers (40 miles) southeast of the fire's origin, so a satellite image shows possible smoke impacts. Counties like Miami-Dade have issued water shortage alerts, as Florida has received less than half of its normal rainfall, only 1.35 inches (34.3 millimeters) in January, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS). So far this year, the United States has already recorded nearly 75% more wildfires than in the same period in 2025, nearly 7,000, according to the U.S. government's National Interagency Fire Center.
