This is a list of notable wildfires.
See also: List of town and city fires |
See also: Climate change in the Arctic |
According to the WTO in June 2019 arctic wildfires emitted 50 megatonnes (55 million short tons; 49 million long tons) of CO2. This was more than between 2010 and 2018 combined. Most carbon release was from Alaska and Siberia, but also included other arctic areas e.g. in Canada. In Siberia the temperature was about 10 °C (18 °F) higher in June 2019 than the average. In Anchorage, Alaska, on 4 July 2019, the temperature was 32 °C (90 °F), setting a new all-time record high temperature for the town.[9]
See also: List of town and city fires |
see also Forest in Turkey, Climate change in Turkey
See also: List of Arizona wildfires |
See also: List of fires in Canada |
See also: List of California wildfires |
See also: List of Washington wildfires |
See also: List of town and city fires |
From 2007 to 2017, wildfires burned an average of 6.2 and 6.6 million acres (2.5 and 2.7 million ha) per year in the U.S. and Canada, respectively.[25]
Check out the US fire map at https://www.fireweatheravalanche.org/fire/ for more information
† Indicates a currently burning fire
Year | Size | Name | Area | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1825 | 3,000,000 acres (1,200,000 ha) | 1825 Miramichi fire | New Brunswick | Killed between 160 and 300 people. |
1845 | 1,500,000 acres (610,000 ha)[26] | The Great Fire | Oregon | |
1853 | 450,000 acres (180,000 ha)[26] | The Yaquina Fire | Oregon | |
1868 | 300,000 acres (120,000 ha)[26] | The Coos Fire | Oregon | |
1870 | 964,000 acres (390,000 ha)[27] | Saguenay Fire[28][29] | Quebec | |
1871 | 1,200,000 acres (490,000 ha) | Peshtigo Fire | Wisconsin | Killed between 1,200 and 2,500 people and has the distinction of being the conflagration that caused the most deaths by fire in United States history. It was overshadowed by the Great Chicago Fire that occurred on the same day. |
1871 | 2,500,000 acres (1,000,000 ha) | Great Michigan Fire | Michigan | It was overshadowed by the Great Chicago Fire that occurred on the same day. |
1876 | 500,000 acres (200,000 ha) | Bighorn Fire | Wyoming | |
1881 | 1,000,000 acres (400,000 ha) | Thumb Fire | Michigan | Killed 282 people |
1889 | 300,000 acres (120,000 ha) | Santiago Canyon Fire | California | |
1894 | 160,000 acres (65,000 ha) | Great Hinckley Fire | Minnesota | Killed 418+ people and destroyed 12 towns |
1898 | 2,500,000 acres (1,000,000 ha)[26] | South Carolina | ||
1902 | 238,900 acres (96,700 ha) | Yacolt Burn | Washington and Oregon | 65+ deaths, Plus 20 Other Fire Events from 1910 - 1952 |
1903 | 464,000 acres (188,000 ha) | Adirondack Fire | New York | |
1908 | 64,000 acres
(25,900 ha) |
1908 Fernie Fire | British Columbia | Town of Fernie, BC destroyed. 22 casualties reported. Cause: logging slash.[30] |
1910 | 3,000,000 acres (1,200,000 ha) | Great Fire of 1910 | Idaho and Montana |
87 people (incl. 78 firefighters) killed and several towns destroyed across North Idaho and Western Montana. ~2,000 separate blazes burned an area the size of Connecticut in what is believed to have been the largest fire in recorded U.S. history up to that point, although it has since been exceeded by the 2011 Texas wildfires and the 2020 California wildfires.[31] |
1911 | 500,000 acres (200,000 ha) | Great Porcupine Fire | Ontario | Killed between 73 and 200 people |
1916 | 500,000 acres (200,000 ha) | Great Matheson Fire | Ontario | Killed 223 people according to official figures, and destroyed several towns, Cochrane burnt again after just five years. |
1918 | 100,000 acres (40,000 ha) | Cloquet Fire | Minnesota and Wisconsin |
Killed 453 people |
1919 | 5,000,000 acres
(2,023,000 ha) |
Great Fire of 1919 | Alberta and Saskatchewan | Spanning from Lac La Biche, AB to almost Prince Albert, SK. Village of Lac La Biche destroyed. 300+ people homeless. An estimated $200,000 in property damage.
Cause: drought, high winds, lightning. Forest Fire area burned is an estimation.[32][33] |
1922 | 415,000 acres (168,000 ha) | Great Fire of 1922 | Ontario | Killed 43 people and burnt through 18 townships in the Timiskaming District |
1923 | Giant Berkeley Fire | California | Leveled 50 city blocks, destroying 624 buildings[26] | |
1932 | 220,000 acres (89,000 ha) | Matilija Fire | California | |
1933 | 47 acres (19 ha) | 1933 Griffith Park Fire | California | Killed 29 firefighters and injured more than 150[26] |
1933 | 350,000 acres (140,000 ha) | Tillamook Burn | Oregon | |
1937 | 1,700 acres (690 ha) | Blackwater Creek Fire | Wyoming | Killed 15 firefighters[26] |
1947 | 175,000 acres (71,000 ha) | Great Fires of 1947 | Maine | A series of fires that lasted ten days; 16 people killed. Forest fire destroyed part of Bar Harbor and damaged Acadia National Park. |
1948 | 645,000 acres (261,000 ha) | Mississagi/Chapleau fire | Ontario | |
1949 | 4,500 acres (1,800 ha) | Mann Gulch fire | Montana | 12 firefighters who parachuted near the fire and 1 forest ranger died after being overtaken by a 200-foot wall of fire at the top of a gulch near Helena, Montana. |
1950 | 3,500,000 acres (1,400,000 ha) | Chinchaga Fire | British Columbia and Alberta | Largest single North American fire on record. The B.C. portion was just 90,000 ha.[34] |
1953 | 1,300 acres (530 ha) | Rattlesnake Fire | California | Killed 15 firefighters. Well known textbook case used to train firefighters. |
1956 | 40,000 acres (16,000 ha) | Cleveland National Fire | California | Started 25 November. Fire destroyed 40,000 acres in Cleveland National Forest and caused 11 deaths. |
1958 | 558,260 acres (225,920 ha) | Kech Fire | British Columbia | Largest wildfire in BC history[34][dead link][35] until the 2017 Plateau Fire of 521,012 hectares.[36] |
1961 | 16,090 acres (6,510 ha) | Bel Air Fire | California | 484 homes destroyed and ~112 injuries. |
1963 | 183,000 acres (74,000 ha) | Black Saturday Fire | New Jersey | 400 buildings destroyed and 7 people killed.[37] |
1970 | 175,425 acres (70,992 ha) | Laguna Fire | California | 382 homes destroyed and 8 people killed. |
1977 | 10,000 acres (4,000 ha) | Marble Cone Fire | California | Vandenberg Air Force Base, 4 people killed, including the base commander, and two fire chiefs.[38][39] |
1983 | 45,000 acres (18,000 ha) | Swiss Fire | British Columbia | Houston, British Columbia, destroyed 7 residences |
1985 | 93,000 acres (38,000 ha) | Allen Fire | North Carolina | In 1985, nearly 93,000 acres of forest, wetlands and farmland burned in northeastern North Carolina in one of the biggest fires in modern state history[40] |
1987 | 650,000 acres (260,000 ha) | Siege of 1987 | California and Oregon | These fires were started by a large lightning storm in late August. The storm started roughly 1600 new fires, most caused by dry lightning.[41] |
1988 | 793,880 acres (321,270 ha) | Yellowstone fires of 1988 | Wyoming and Montana |
Never controlled by firefighters; only burned out when a snowstorm hit. |
1989 | 8,105,000 acres
(3,280,000 ha) |
The Manitoba Fires | Manitoba | 1147 wildfires in central and northern Manitoba in the spring & summer of 1989. 24,500 people evacuated from 32 communities. Over 100 homes destroyed. Worst fire season in province's history. Cause: severe drought, human and natural ignition sources.[42] |
1990 | 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) | Painted Cave Fire | California | 1 death and 430 buildings burned in this arson fire near Santa Barbara |
1991 | 1,520 acres (620 ha) | Oakland Hills firestorm | California | Killed 25 and destroyed 3469 homes and apartments within the cities of Oakland and Berkeley |
1993 | 14,337 acres (5,802 ha) | Laguna Beach Fire | California | Destroyed 441 homes, burned 14,337 acres causing $528,000,000 in damage.[43] |
1994 | 2,115 acres (856 ha) | South Canyon Fire | Colorado | Killed 14 firefighters |
1995 | 12,354 acres (4,999 ha) | Mount Vision Fire | California | 45 homes destroyed |
1996 | 37,336 acres (15,109 ha) | Miller's Reach Fire | Alaska | Most destructive wildfire in Alaska history. 344 structures destroyed. |
1998 | 506,000 acres (205,000 ha) | 1998 Florida wildfires | Florida | 4899 fires, burned 342 homes, $390 million timber lost.[44] |
1998 | 14,800 acres
(6,000 ha) |
Silver Creek Fire | British Columbia | Immediately SW of Salmon Arm, BC. Cause was lightning. Approximately 7,000 people evacuated. Over 40 buildings destroyed. It cost over $10,000,000 to extinguish.[33] |
2011 | 4,011,709 acres (1,623,481 ha) | 2011 Texas wildfires | Texas | Wildfires began November 2010 and continued to rage due to a severe drought that lasted 271 months. 47.3% of all acreage burned in the United States in 2011 was burned in Texas. Firefighters came from over 43 states to assist, with 2 losing their lives. Governor of Texas declared a State of Disaster December 21, 2010 and renewing the proclamation monthly. April 16, 2011 President Obama was asked to declare 252 of the 254 counties after approximately 2,000,000 acres had burnt. July 1, 2011, the request was partially granted. The following month, August 2011, was the second hottest month on record. |
2020 | 600,000 acres (240,000 ha) | 2020 Colorado wildfires | Colorado | Low-end estimate of burned acreage based on Inciweb since May 2020 in Colorado. The state's worst fire season on record. The season of the Hayman Fire saw 360,000 acres burn - which was the previous record holder. |
2020 | 10,073 acres (4,076 ha) | CalWood Fire | Colorado | Started October 17 2020 near Jamestown in Boulder, CO. The second major area in the state threatened with evacuations in October 2020. |
2020 | 180,000 acres (73,000 ha) | East Troublesome Fire | Colorado | Started October 2020 Just North of Hot Sulphur Springs near the Williams Fork fire. New evacuations ordered on October 17, 2020 for parts of Grand County. Grew to 125,602 acres, overtook Grand Lake, and is now burning most of Rocky Mountain National Park as October 24, 2020 with wind and snow forecasted to be a mixed blessing. The fire could overtake Estes Park and the historic Stanley Hotel. The town was under mandatory evacuation by October 24, 2020. In another historic feat, the fire jumped the Continental Divide, the same rocky treeless divide that stopped the Williams Fork fire. Estes Park evacuated 10/24/2020. |
2020 | 460 acres (190 ha) | Lefthand Canyon Fire | Colorado† | Started mid-October 2020. Notable for its proximity to the CalWood fire. |
2020 | 12,180 acres (4,930 ha) | Isom Creek Fire | Alaska | Started June 2020. |
2020 | 3,226 acres (1,306 ha) | Fawn Creek Fire | Colorado | Started July 2020 Northwest of Rifle. |
2020 | 119,987 acres (48,557 ha) | Bighorn Fire | Arizona | Started June 2020 S of Phoenix. |
2020 | 28,051 acres (11,352 ha) | Blue River 2 | Arizona | Started August 2020 W of Phoenix. |
2020 | 193,455 acres (78,288 ha) | Bush Fire | Arizona | Started June 2020 near Theodore Roosevelt Lake just N of Phoenix. |
2020 | 75,817 acres (30,682 ha) | Evans Canyon Fire | Washington | Started September 2020 near Yakima WA. 90% contained 10/18/2020. |
2020 | 17,988 acres (7,279 ha) | Palmer Fire | Washington | Started September 2020 in Northern Washington near Canada. |
2020 | 127,430 acres (51,570 ha) | Whitney Fire | Washington | Started September 2020 in Western Washington. |
2020 | 9,330 acres (3,780 ha) | Road 11 Fire | Washington | Started July 2020 in Western Washington just West of Pearl Hill Fire. |
2020 | 223,730 acres (90,540 ha) | Pearl Hill Fire | Washington | Started September 2020 in Western Washington. 90% contained 10/18/2020. |
2020 | 14,486 acres (5,862 ha) | PORPHYRY Fire | Idaho | Started September 2020 N of Boise. |
2020 | 19,477 acres (7,882 ha) | Buck Fire | Idaho | Started September 2020 N of Boise. 40% contained 10/14/2020. |
2020 | 96,614 acres (39,098 ha) | Woodhead Fire† | Idaho | Started September 2020 NW of Boise near Cuddy Mountain. 90% contained 10/18/2020. |
2020 | 6,293 acres (2,547 ha) | Matlin Fire | Utah | Started June 2020 NW of Salt Lake City near the Great Salt Lake and Idaho Border. |
2020 | 1,274 acres (516 ha) | Center Creek Fire | Utah | Started October 2020 NW of Salt Lake City. 100% Contained by 10/15/2020. |
2020 | 5,832 acres (2,360 ha) | William Fire | Utah | Started September 2020 S of Salt Lake City. 100% Contained by October 2020. |
2020 | 73,661 acres (29,810 ha) | East Fork Fire | Utah† | Started September 2020 NE of Salt Lake City nearer to CO border. |
2020 | 1,199 acres (485 ha) | County Rd T Fire | Colorado | Started July 2020 near Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site in Eastern CO. |
2020 | 2,000 acres (810 ha) | DETER-Winters Fire | Colorado | Started September 2020 in Eastern CO near Shamrock Fire |
2020 | 4,200 acres (1,700 ha) | Shamrock Fire | Colorado | Started September 2020 in Eastern CO |
2020 | 159 acres (64 ha) | Thorpe Fire | Colorado | Started August 2020 West of Monument and Castle Rock in Park County. |
2020 | 2,174 acres (880 ha) | 74.5 Fire | Colorado | Started May 2020 in Southern CO |
2020 | 11,828 acres (4,787 ha) | Cherry Canyon Fire | Colorado | Started June 2020 in Southern CO |
2020 | 176,878 acres (71,580 ha) | Mullen Fire | Colorado and Wyoming | Started September 2020 near Laramie and spread to Jackson County, CO by October. Forced evacuations in Wyoming and Northern Colorado. Was at 34% containment 10/16/2020 and 53% containment 10/18/2020 with winter weather setting in. Reached 85% containment by October 24, 2020. |
2013 | 110,405 acres (44,679 ha) | West Fork Complex Fire | Colorado | Started June 2013 |
2018 | 108,043 acres (43,723 ha) | Spring Creek Fire | Colorado | Started June 2018 |
2018 | 54,129 acres (21,905 ha) | 416 & Burro Fire Complex | Colorado | Started June 2018 |
2002 | 71,739 acres (29,032 ha) | Missionary Ridge Fire | Colorado | Started June 2002 |
2016 | 38,380 acres (15,530 ha) | Beaver Creek Fire | Colorado | Started June 2002 |
2011 | 46,257 acres (18,720 ha) | Bear Springs Complex Fire | Colorado | Started August 2011 |
2008 | 46,612 acres (18,863 ha) | Bridger Fire | Colorado | Started around June 2008 |
2017 | 32,564 acres (13,178 ha) | Logan Fire | Colorado | Started September 2017 |
2018 | 36,520 acres (14,780 ha) | Bull Draw Fire | Colorado | Started July 2018 |
2018 | 42,795 acres (17,319 ha) | MM 117 Fire | Colorado | Started April 2018 |
2018 | 20,120 acres (8,140 ha) | Silver Creek Fire | Colorado | Started September 2018 |
2018 | 36,520 acres (14,780 ha) | Badger Hole Fire | Colorado | Started April 2018 |
2019 | 8,959 acres (3,626 ha) | Decker Fire | Colorado | Started September 2019 |
2020 | 88 acres (36 ha) | Deep Creek Fire | Colorado | Started October 2020. More notable for its start date and proximity to the Williams fork fire. Was 100% contained by 10/12/2020 due to fresh snow. Last burn update was 10/13/2020. |
2020 | 165 acres (67 ha) | Lewiston Fire | Colorado | Started July 2020 |
2020 | 2,905 acres (1,176 ha) | East Canyon Fire | Colorado | Started July 2020 |
2002 | 31,016 acres (12,552 ha) | Mt. Zirkel Complex Fire | Colorado | Started August 2002 |
2020 | 20,433 acres (8,269 ha) | Middle Fork Fire | Colorado | Started September 2020.1% contained 10/17/2020. Still growing as of October 24, 2020. |
2020 | 139,007 acres (56,254 ha) | Pine Gulch Fire | Colorado | Started July 2020. 100% containmment 9/23/2020. Likely out by mid-October 2020. |
2020 | 14,749 acres (5,969 ha) | Williams Fork Fire | Colorado | Started August 2020. Containment reached 30% on October 24, 2020. The fire nearly crested Jones pass and began threatening a large beetle kill area running up to the Cameron Peak fire. |
2020 | 207,464 acres (83,958 ha) | Cameron Peak Fire | Colorado | Started August 2020, 40% containment 4 October 2020.At least parts of one Ft. Collins zipcode were under mandatory evacuation as of 10/16 but not the city proper. The fire was 67% 10/18/2020. AS of October 24, 2020 at 60% containment, the Cameron Peak fire and East Troublesome Fire looked like they could merge. These are already the two largest fires in state history. |
2020 | 32,631 acres (13,205 ha) | Grizzly Creek Fire | Colorado | Started August 2020. Still burning 10/18/2020. Reached 91% containment October 24, 2020. |
1999 | 140,948 acres (57,040 ha) | Big Bar Complex Fire | California | Started August 1999 |
2000 | 48,000 acres (19,000 ha) | Cerro Grande Fire | New Mexico | Burned about 420 dwellings in Los Alamos, New Mexico, damaged >100 buildings at Los Alamos National Laboratory; $1 billion damage |
2001 | 9,300 acres (3,800 ha) | Thirtymile Fire | Washington | Killed 4 firefighters |
2002 | 92,000 acres (37,000 ha) | Ponil Complex Fire | New Mexico | also called the Philmont Fire. |
2002 | 150,700 acres (61,000 ha) | McNally Fire | California | Largest fire in Sequoia National Forest history. |
2002 | 467,066 acres (189,015 ha) | Rodeo–Chediski Fire | Arizona | Threatened, but did not burn the town of Show Low, Arizona |
2002 | 137,760 acres (55,750 ha) | Hayman Fire in Pike National Forest | Colorado | Five firefighter deaths, 600 structures fires |
2002 | 499,750 acres (202,240 ha) | Florence/Sour Biscuit Complex Fire | Oregon | 150 million dollars to suppress. |
2003 | 84,750 acres (34,300 ha) | Aspen Fire | Arizona | Destroyed large portions of Summerhaven, Arizona |
2003 | 61,776 acres (25,000 ha) | Okanagan Mountain Park Fire | British Columbia | Displaced 45,000 inhabitants, destroyed 239 homes and threatened urbanized sections of Kelowna. |
2003 | 90,769 acres (36,733 ha) | B&B Complex fires | Oregon | Burned along the crest of the Cascade Mountains between Mount Washington and Mount Jefferson including 40,419 acres (163.57 km2) within the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. |
2003 | 91,281 acres (36,940 ha) | Old Fire | California | 993 homes destroyed, 6 deaths. Simultaneous with the Cedar Fire. |
2003 | 273,246 acres (110,579 ha) | Cedar Fire | California | Third largest recorded fire in modern California history; burned 2,232 homes and killed 15 in San Diego County. |
2004 | 1,305,592 acres (528,354 ha) | Taylor Complex Fire | Alaska | Largest wildfire by acreage of 1997–2007 time period |
2006 | 40,200 acres (16,300 ha) | Esperanza Fire | California | Arson-caused wildfire that killed 5 firefighters and destroyed 34 homes and 20 outbuildings. |
2006 | 160,000 acres (65,000 ha) | Day Fire | California | 1 residence burned, no casualties. |
2007 | 564,450 acres (228,420 ha) | Sweat Farm Road/Big Turnaround Complex Fire | Georgia | Largest recorded fire in Georgia history. 26 structures were lost. |
2007 | 124,584 acres (50,417 ha) | Florida Bugaboo Fire | Florida | Largest fire on record in Florida. |
2007 | 18,000 acres (7,300 ha) | Warren Grove Fire | New Jersey | Forest fire in the New Jersey Pine Barrens caused by a flare form an F-16 jet. Destroyed 4 homes, damaged 53 homes, injured 2.[45] |
2007 | 363,052 acres (146,922 ha) | Milford Flat Fire | Utah | Largest fire on record in Utah. |
2007 | 653,100 acres (264,300 ha) | Murphy Complex Fire | Idaho and Nevada | |
2007 | 240,207 acres (97,208 ha) | Zaca Fire | California | Started July 2007. Second largest California fire at the time after the Cedar fire of 2003. |
2007 | 972,000 acres (393,000 ha) | October 2007 California wildfires | California | A series of wildfires that killed 9 people and injured 85 (including 61 firefighters). Burned at least 1,500 homes from the Santa Barbara County to the U.S.–Mexico border. |
2008 | 41,534 acres (16,808 ha) | Evans Road Wildfire | North Carolina | Peat fire started on 1 June by lightning strike during North Carolina's drought – the worst on record. |
2008 | 1,557,293 acres (630,214 ha) | 2008 California wildfires | California | In Northern California, the fires were mostly started by lightning. In Santa Barbara (Southern California), the Gap fire endangered homes and lives. The Basin Complex and Gap fire were the highest priority fires in the state at this time. |
2009 | 19,130 acres (7,740 ha) | Highway 31 Fire | South Carolina | Brush fire in Myrtle Beach, the most destructive fire in terms of loss in state history. Destroyed 76 homes and damaged 97.[46] |
2009 | 164,500 acres (66,600 ha) | Brittany Triangle Fire | British Columbia | Also known as the Lava Canyon fire this was the largest fire in BC in 2009. Started 31 July by lightning this fire made news when it threatened a wild horse population.[47] |
2010 | 98,842 acres (40,000 ha) | Binta Lake Fire | British Columbia | BC's largest blaze of 2010, resulted in evacuation orders and alerts. Burned 70,000 acres in a 12-hour period.[34] |
2011 | 538,049 acres (217,741 ha) | Wallow Fire | Arizona and New Mexico | The largest fire in Arizona state history. In one 24-hour burn period (6/6-6/7), it consumed 77769 acres of forest land. |
2011 | 34,000 acres (14,000 ha) | Bastrop County Complex Fire | Texas | The worst fire in Texas state history, destroyed over 1500 homes |
2011 | 1,748,636 acres (707,648 ha) | Richardson Backcountry Fire | Alberta | The largest Canadian fire since 1950. |
2011 | 156,293 acres (63,250 ha) | Las Conchas Fire | New Mexico | Third largest fire in New Mexico state history. 63 homes lost. Threatened Los Alamos National Laboratory. |
2011 | 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) | Slave Lake Wildfire | Alberta | Burned through Slave Lake, Alberta, Canada and its surrounding area from 14 May 2011 through 16 May 2011. The fire destroyed roughly one-third of Slave Lake and cost $1.8 billion. |
2012 | 289,478 acres (117,148 ha) | Whitewater–Baldy complex Fire | New Mexico | Second-largest wildfire in New Mexico state history. Began in the Gila Wilderness as two separate fires that converged, both started by lightning. Destroyed 12 homes in Willow Creek, NM. |
2012 | 44,330 acres (17,940 ha) | Little Bear Fire | New Mexico | Most destructive wildfire in New Mexico state history. Began in the Lincoln National Forest and was started by lightning. |
2012 | 87,284 acres (35,323 ha) | High Park Fire | Colorado | Started by lightning, it is the second largest wildfire in Colorado state history by size. |
2012 | 18,247 acres (7,384 ha) | Waldo Canyon Fire | Colorado | Rampart Range and West Colorado Springs with 346 homes destroyed primarily in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood, it is the second most destructive fire in state history. Two fatalities reported. |
2012 | 248,000 acres (100,000 ha) | Ash Creek Fire[48] | Montana | |
2012 | 719,694 acres (291,250 ha) | Long Draw Fire and Miller Homestead Fire | Oregon | Oregon's largest fire in 150 years. |
2012 | 332,000 acres (134,000 ha) | Mustang Complex Wildfire | Idaho | [49] |
2012 | 315,557 acres (127,701 ha) | Rush Fire | California and Nevada | |
2013 | 14,198 acres (5,746 ha)[50] | Black Forest Fire | Colorado | North of Colorado Springs, Large, fast-spreading fire due to dry conditions, high heat and restless winds. Destroyed 509 homes and left 17 homes partially damaged. As of 13 June 2013 it became the most destructive fire in Colorado state history. |
2013 | 1,300 acres (530 ha)[51] | Yarnell Hill Fire | Arizona | 19 firefighters killed on 30 June 2013. |
2013 | 617,763 acres (250,000 ha)[52] | Quebec Fire | Quebec | Over 300 evacuated. |
2013 | 253,332 acres (102,520 ha)[53] | Rim Fire | California | Occurred in Yosemite National Park. Biggest wildfire on record in the Sierra Nevada, and fourth largest wildfire in California history. Started 17 August 2013 and was contained on 24 October 2013. |
2014 | 252,000 acres (102,000 ha)[54] | Carlton Complex Fire | Washington | Four wildfires merged to become the largest single wildfire in Washington state history.[55] (Of the 3,000,000 acres Great Fire of 1910, only 150,000 acres were in Washington.) |
2014 | 8,400,000 acres (3,400,000 ha)[56] | 2014 Northwest Territories fires | Northwest Territories | Said to have been the largest set of wildfires in 30 years in the Northwest Territories. Total cost of firefighting was between C$55 and C$56 million compared to the normal budget C$7.5 million. There were no reported deaths.[56][57] |
2015 | 302,224 acres (122,306 ha) | Okanogan Complex | Washington | The largest wildfire complex in Washington state history.[58] |
2016 | 367,620 acres (148,770 ha)[59] | Anderson Creek Fire | Kansas and Oklahoma | Largest wildfire in Kansas history.[60] |
2016 | 1,466,990 acres (593,670 ha)[61][62] | Fort McMurray Wildfire | Alberta and Saskatchewan | Largest fire evacuation in Alberta history (88,000 on 3 May, a further 8,000 on 16 May). Over 2,400 homes and buildings destroyed. Costliest disaster in Canadian history. |
2017 | 3,004,932 acres (1,216,053 ha)[63] | 2017 British Columbia wildfires | British Columbia | The 2017 BC fire season is notable for three reasons; first, for the largest total area burnt in a fire season in recorded history; second, for the largest number of total evacuees in a fire season (Estimated 65,000 evacuees); and third, for the largest single fire ever in British Columbia.[64] |
2017 | 1,295,000 acres (524,000 ha) | 2017 Montana wildfires | Montana | Contained thanks to the rain and snow by mid-September. |
2017 | 240,000 acres (97,000 ha)[65] | October 2017 Northern California wildfires | California | The October 2017 Northern California wildfires were a large group of forest fires that killed 44 people and destroyed 8,900 structures. |
2017 | 281,893 acres (114,078 ha) | Thomas Fire | California | Largest wildfire in modern California history at the time (see 1889 Santiago Canyon fire that may have been larger). Spread fast due to strong winds and unusual dry weather in December.[66] |
2017 | 28,516 acres (11,540 ha) | Goodwin Fire | Arizona | Shut down parts of Highway 69 between Mayer and Dewey-Humboldt. The Fire destroyed 5 homes and damaged 2 more.[67] |
2018 | 3,346,508 acres (1,354,284 ha)[63] | 2018 British Columbia wildfires | British Columbia | Initial estimates put 2018 as the largest total burn-area in any British Columbia wildfire season, surpassing the historic 2017 wildfire season.[68] |
2018 | 459,102 acres (185,792 ha) | Mendocino Complex Fire | California | 229 structures destroyed, 2 reported deaths |
2018 | 229,651 acres (92,936 ha) | Carr Fire | California | 1,604 structures destroyed, 8 reported deaths |
2018 | 96,949 acres (39,234 ha) | Woolsey Fire | California | 1,643 structures destroyed, 3 fatalities, 5 injuries |
2018 | 149,000 acres (60,000 ha) | Camp Fire | California | 18,804 structures destroyed, 85 confirmed deaths, 2 missing, 17 injured, deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California to date.[69][70] |
2020 | 938,044 acres (379,613 ha) | August Complex Fire | California | Largest wildfire in California history. This fire was divided into three zones: the August Complex North Zone (Elkhorn Fire), the August Complex South Zone (Doe Fire), and the August Complex West Zone due to the enormous size. |
2020 | 1,000,000 acres (400,000 ha) | 2020 Oregon wildfires | Oregon | Destroyed over 3,000 buildings, and killed at least 10 people.[71] |
2020 | 4,420,301 acres (1,788,832 ha) | 2020 California wildfires | California | Largest California wildfire season in recorded history. |
Some wildfires occurred in Greenland in August 2017.[72][further explanation needed]
There was a large wildfire between Sisimiut and Kangerlussuaq from July to August 2019.[73] It was put out by members of Beredskabsstyrelsen, who were flown in.
Main article: List of major bushfires in Australia |