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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

Cow1,473 ac
1982 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Unknown1,094 ac
1982 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Dave Fitzpatrick #21,034 ac
1982 · perimeter dated July 28, 1982
Unnamed Fire1,028 ac
1982 · perimeter dated September 23, 1982
Unknown1,015 ac
1982 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Unnamed Fire1,015 ac
1982 · perimeter dated June 28, 1982
Atlas Peak33,606 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Cow Mtn.25,664 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Oat17,787 ac
1981 · perimeter dated October 31, 1981
Oat Fire17,787 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Langes Peak14,448 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Meiss14,126 ac
1981 · perimeter dated June 14, 1981
Barber12,163 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Unnamed Fire9,182 ac
1981 · perimeter dated June 15, 1981
Unknown9,182 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Oak_Moutain8,688 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Dawson8,000 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Assist #597,311 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Elephant6,852 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Ingalls (Assist #12)6,697 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Rey6,315 ac
1981 · perimeter dated September 21, 1981
Unknown5,951 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Unknown5,139 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Grizzly4,811 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Sulphur Bank4,568 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Outside Origin #24,325 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Colton4,051 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Wrights3,843 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Horse Valley3,830 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Gamboa #13,694 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Swall3,160 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Washburn Ranch3,110 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Morena Avenue2,648 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Larson-Signorelli2,559 ac
1981 · perimeter dated October 13, 1981
Blackhawk2,361 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Roche2,316 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Rey2,257 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Rey2,244 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Concours2,233 ac
1981 · perimeter dated January 2, 2019
Unnamed Fire2,193 ac
1981

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.