PHOENIX (AP) – The wildfire danger will be higher than usual this spring across the Southwest, much of the Plains and parts of the South, the government warned Thursday.

Wildfires have already ravaged broad areas of Texas and Oklahoma this winter. In its annual spring weather outlook, the National Weather Service said severe drought and above-normal temperatures across the region are expected to persist.

Besides the Southwest and the southern Plains, Florida, Louisiana and Nebraska, and parts of California, South Dakota, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi, show above-average wildfire potential. So does Alaska.

So far this year, more than 13,000 fires have scorched in excess of 930,000 acres nationally, compared with the five-year average of about 6,300 fires and fewer than 100,000 acres in the same time period. In Texas alone, fires have burned almost 840,000 acres and killed 11 people.

The southeast coast, including Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, also has serious potential for drought, officials said.

On the other end of the spectrum, at highest risk of flooding is the Red River, which divides North Dakota and Minnesota, officials said. The forecast said the river, which submerged Grand Forks, N.D., for almost two weeks in spring 1997, is at risk of “moderate to major flooding.”

Also considered at flood risk are parts of the West, the Ohio Valley and southern Mississippi.

The area from Maine to Ohio shows below-normal wildfire potential, while the Northwest, northern Plains and most of the South are average.

The Northwest, northern Plains and northern Rockies are expected to be the only parts of the country with below-average temperatures, while a region from North Dakota through the Great Lakes is the only area expected to get above-average rain and snow.

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: http://www.noaa.gov