With much of Central Florida under a drought as it ushers in another dry spring, it’s not just farmers who are praying for rain — so are firefighters. Dry conditions, steady winds and lower humidity have created prime conditions for wildfires, said Forest Ranger Mike Facente of the Florida Forest Service. Since the start of the year, 51 wildfires have burned nearly 16,000 acres in the Orlando area. The trend holds statewide, with Florida seeing about 30 percent more fires in the first three months of 2017 than the year before, Facente said. From January to March last year, 700 fires burned 12,900 acres, Facente said. With another week or so left in March, there have been 1,000 wildfires in Florida, and 46,000 acres have burned in 2017. “With the conditions right now with these winds, [fire] hits the ground and it’s gone,” Facente said. The U.S. Drought Monitor listed Osceola, east Orange and most of Seminole County under a “moderate drought” in its weekly report on Thursday. The rest of Central Florida was categorized as “abnormally dry,” a trend meteorologists expect to continue. As of Saturday, the Orlando area had had about 3 inches of rain since the…