Governor Laura Kelly today announced the creation of the Governor’s Wildfire Task Force, a group of leaders from across the state, to create recommendations for how Kansas communities can better prevent, respond to, and recover from wildfires. The Task Force met for the first time yesterday over Zoom. Several parts of Kansas have experienced large-scale wildfires in the last 10 years, causing catastrophic financial losses and threatening the safety of residents, fire fighters, and first responders. The Governor’s Wildfire Task Force will take a comprehensive look at mitigating wildfire threats, review the role that local governments and state officials play in responding to such emergencies, and address how these entities can provide more support to communities impacted by devastating wildfires.