ST. LOUIS (First Alert 4) — Drought conditions, warmer weather and gusty winds have created an elevated risk for wildfires in the area. On Monday the National Weather Service issued a warning about an increased threat level for fires. And on Tuesday morning, a fire in the Mark Twain National Forest near Ava, Missouri, spread over 1,500 acres, causing some evacuations in the area and sending smoke all the way into parts of the St. Louis area.