Wildfire and Drought in Guam, March 1 to 31, 1998

Name: Wildfire and Drought in Guam, March 1 to 31, 1998
Start: 1998-03-01T00:00
End: 1998-03-31T23:59
Location: Guam

March 1 to 31, 1998 · NWS GUA · 5 events in 4 counties and zones

Drought continues across the Western Pacific. The dry conditions gave rise to conditions favourable for uncontrolled fires across Guam.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $120,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS GUA wrote it up.

Drought continues across the Western Pacific. The dry conditions gave rise to conditions favourable for uncontrolled fires across Guam. These fires burnt 7619 acres. This is the third month of these types of fires, but up to this month they have been mainly in wooded areas. This month, though, the fires consumed a house in Merizo. Rainfall is low across the rest of Micronesia with most places not receiving even an inch of rain. Majuro in the Marshall Islands had only 0.27 of an inch for the entire month, with the average being 8.26 inches. Water rationing continues across many of the islands.

Event by event

4 drought, 1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Guam

When: March 1, 12:00 AM HST to March 31, 11:59 PM HST
Where: Guam County, Merizo
Property damage: $120,000

Drought, Guam

When: March 1, 12:00 AM HST to March 31, 11:59 PM HST
Where: Guam forecast zone

Drought, Marshall Islands

When: March 1, 12:00 AM HST to March 31, 11:59 PM HST
Where: Marshall Islands forecast zone

Drought, Belau

When: March 1, 12:00 AM HST to March 31, 11:59 PM HST
Where: Belau forecast zone

Drought, Micronesia

When: March 1, 12:00 AM HST to March 31, 11:59 PM HST
Where: Micronesia forecast zone

What these are

Wildfire: A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.
Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Guam in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Guam, March 1998

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5639217, 5639218, 5639219, 5639220, 5639221.