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California Large Wildfire History

Since 1980, 2,299 wildfires of 1,000 acres or more have been mapped in California, 36 of them above 100,000 acres. The largest burned 501,082 ac; together they cover about 26,054,017 ac.

Fires by decade

'80
'90
'00
'10
'20

What starts the fires in California

Every wildfire incident on record has a cause code. Counts are of incidents, not acres — lightning fires are fewer but tend to grow far larger.

By broad cause
Undetermined72%6.0M ac
Unknown18%5.5M ac
Human5%1.6M ac
Natural5%5.0M ac
Specific cause, where recorded
Lightning977
Recreation429
Equipment / vehicle use398
Debris / open burning153
Arson / incendiary100
Firearms36
Natural (other)18
Fireworks5
Railroad1

Source: National Interagency Fire Center, WFIGS incident records (WFIGS incident records, roughly 2014 to present). A specific cause is recorded for only some incidents; “Undetermined” and “Unknown” are the agency's own categories.

Largest in California

Biscuit · 2002501,082 acRanch · 2018410,203 acRanch · 2018410,202 acRanch · 2018410,201 acRush · 2012315,512 acRush · 2012307,083 acThomas · 2017281,791 acThomas · 2017281,790 acCedar · 2003270,686 acRim · 2013256,916 ac

All mapped large fires

Star16,465 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Darby14,281 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Martis14,127 ac
2001 · perimeter dated June 17, 2001
Creek Fire11,095 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Creek11,095 ac
2001 · perimeter dated August 24, 2001
Viejas10,438 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Swillup Ii8,100 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Poe8,055 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Hoover7,363 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 21, 2021
Hoover7,231 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Stables6,402 ac
2001 · perimeter dated October 12, 2001
Stables Fire6,402 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Crater5,590 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Leonard5,188 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Clear4,319 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Devil4,254 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Highway4,151 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
North Fork4,131 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Stream3,526 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Bell2,978 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Ponderosa2,778 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Mclaughlin2,714 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Gap2,447 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Burnt2,213 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Burnt2,209 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 21, 2021
Reche1,798 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
1651,797 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Sloan Fire1,789 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Sloan1,789 ac
2001 · perimeter dated August 27, 2001
Oregon1,694 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Highway 701,693 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Jackson1,671 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Jones1,547 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Long Canyon Vmp1,449 ac
2001 · perimeter dated October 6, 2001
Loop Vmp1,437 ac
2001 · perimeter dated October 18, 2001
Blue Oaks1,427 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Mcphails Peak Vmp1,418 ac
2001 · perimeter dated October 10, 2001
Bell1,409 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Watkins1,404 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Rock1,313 ac
2001 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019

Source: National Interagency Fire Center, Interagency Fire Perimeter History. Only fires with a mapped perimeter of 1,000 acres or more appear; the state is inferred from the responsible unit code. A record of past fires is not a forecast. See About the Data.