There are 29 large fires active across the US, national agency reports

An air tanker drops retardant while battling the Aero Fire in Calaveras County, California, on June 17. 

Noah Berger/AP

Five new large fires started yesterday, bringing the nationwide total to 29 large, active fires burning in the US, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. 

All but one of the fires are in the Western US and Alaska. California leads the way with 10 large fires and New Mexico has 4. 

So far this year, nearly 19,000 wildfires have burned nearly 2,100,000 acres nationwide. This is well more than the 10-year average of acres burned to date, which is around 1,400,000.

More active fire conditions are possible today as “dry, southwesterly flow will be strong and gusty over portions of central and eastern New Mexico and possibly into western New Mexico and southern Arizona in the afternoon,” the summary from NIFC said.