So now that Gov. Charlie Crist has declared a state of emergency thanks to all the recent fires, rain dances may be necessary if conditions don't improve in South Florida or the rest of the state. I guess it's good the rainy (and hurricane) season are just a couple of weeks away, but who knows how much rainfall we'll get to improve our drought.

This map shows how many fires have occurred in Florida since January 1. The red flame icons indicate how many have burned since Saturday, May 9. Why May 9 you ask? We thought a week's worth of fires would be relevant to show you why there had been interstate closures in recent days.

I also made larger maps of the Naples and Palm Beach County areas, so you can see clearly how many fires we've had lately. Remember the Big Cypress fire? Check out its size and see why I-75 was shut down for so long.

If you're interested in seeing the latest conditions, check out the U.S. Forestry Division's site to see how many more fires are burning in the Sunshine State.