Fears are rising that this year could vie with the 2000 fire season when 122,827 fires blazed over 8.4 million acres (3 million hectares). It cost nearly $1.36 billion to fight the worse fires in nearly 50 years.

In Colorado there have already been 283 fires this year consuming 7,600 acres, worst than in 2000 when 54 fires burned 2,700 acres by this time.

The snowpack is 27 percent of normal, grass moisture is a mere 1 percent to 4 percent of normal and moisture in the trees stands at only 6 percent to 10 percent of normal, Colorado Gov. Bill Owens told reporters this week.

"It's very clear nature is testing Colorado this year. It's going to be a long, dry summer," Owens said.

About 1 million people in Colorado live in "hot zone" areas where development spills over into the forest. Those residents are being cautioned to clear brush and be ready to flee if a fire spreads.

DON'T WATER THAT LAWN

Utah, which is in its fourth year of drought, is asking residents not to water their lawns between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. during June, July and August when water just evaporates in hot weather. "We can reduce water consumption by 10 to 15 percent by following this simple practice," Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt said.

Montana is in its third or sixth year of drought, depending on the county, said Jesse Aber, a state official on the governor's drought advisory committee. "We're hoping for a cold, wet spring that could drag out till June," Aber said.

Snowpack in Montana has been normal, but the soil is so dry that it absorbs the melted water before it gets to streams.

On Monday 16 western governors urged Congress to restore funding to prevent fires and restore burned out areas.

"With rain and snowpacks well below normal, we will again have a formidable and extensive fire season," the governors said. They urged Congress to restore funding for community assistance, which has been dropped in the 2003 proposed budget.

Rain and snowpacks are below normal in the western United States, raising the specter of a severe drought and a "devastating wildfire season," the Western Governors Association said.

The association said it supported "substantial and continued funding in the areas of prevention and suppression, hazardous fuel reduction, rehabilitation and restoration and community assistance."