Fire experts at wildfiretoday.com are warning today that firefighters across the US are beginning to feel the effects of federal budget cuts to firefighting programs -- making it more and more difficult to fight and prevent forest fires ahead of what is shaping up to be another record setting wildfire season.

 

This year has seen an unusually early wildfire season which began as early as March and has resulted in multiple 'megafires' such as the record-setting outbreak currently blazing in New Mexico.

Fire crews are now scrambling for resources, in a season that appears to be long from over.

"A person has to wonder. Is this going to be the new norm – frequent record-setting fires, while the number of federal firefighters and air tankers continue to shrink?" wrote Bill Gabbert, a former fire management officer and now writer at wildfiretoday.com.