Federal fire managers predict an increase in severe wildfire activity in northern California through October due to unusually hot, dry weather and scant rain, but say areas like Idaho that were charred by fires last year may be in for a reprieve.

The National Interagency Fire Center, headquartered in Boise, has released a 2008 Wildland Fire Outlook forecasting significant fire activity to increase or persist in California; portions of the Western Great Basin in Nevada; the northern Rocky Mountains in eastern Montana; regions of Texas and the southwestern Appalachians in West Virginia.

95 large fires were burning about 821 square miles nationwide as of Tuesday as the agency upped its national preparedness to Level 5, its highest. California has endured the worst of the fires so far this year with 4,661 blazes, burning about 548 square miles.

The agency has also predicted above-normal fire activity in southeast Colorado, but only through the first half of July. Precipitation expected later this month should reduce the fire threat.

Fire managers predict a less-extreme fire season in areas of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, compared to the past two decades, because of a wet winter, partnered with cooler-than-usual spring temperatures.

Last year, nearly 3,125 square miles burned in Idaho, more than any other state during the 2007 fire season. Washington and Oregon have also been hit hard in recent years, experiencing six of their worst fire seasons on record since 2000. (AP)