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NIFC data, computed here

Wildfire season by state: when large fires start

The National Interagency Fire Center maps every large wildfire. This page counts those of 1,000 acres or more by state and month for five years, shows what is on the national list today, and lets you size the revenue that runs through a fire month.

Five years and a dated listNIFC WFIGS interagency fire perimeters and current incidentsFires discovered 2021 to 2025; incident list at retrievalRetrieved Oct 10, 2026, 10:00 UTCretrieved Oct 10, 2026

Read this first

These are counts of mapped large wildfires, not road closures and not a forecast. A fire can burn far from any road, and a smaller fire can close a highway. The perimeter records are kept by many agencies and are not equally complete across years. The "on the national list now" figures are a snapshot, not live. The revenue lines in the form are scenarios built from your own guesses.

From 2021 to 2025 NIFC mapped 1,837 wildfires of 1,000 acres or more in the 50 states, which burned 27,052,990 acres. 73.8% were discovered from June to September, and Jul is the busiest month with 510 fires. Alaska has the most, 280, then Idaho with 176. On Oct 10, 2026 the national incident list held 313 wildfires, 74 of them 1,000 acres or more.

Size a fire month for your freight

Pick a state and a month. The form shows how often large fires have started then, and prices what your own freight through the state would be worth.

Large fires by state

AKAlaska: 280 large fires in 5 years, 5,236,807 acresMEMaine: none in the recordsWIWisconsin: 1 large fires in 5 years, 3,039 acresVTVermont: none in the recordsNHNew Hampshire: none in the recordsWAWashington: 118 large fires in 5 years, 1,481,887 acresIDIdaho: 176 large fires in 5 years, 1,989,045 acresMTMontana: 108 large fires in 5 years, 1,100,630 acresNDNorth Dakota: 23 large fires in 5 years, 121,266 acresMNMinnesota: 13 large fires in 5 years, 84,437 acresILIllinois: none in the recordsMIMichigan: 3 large fires in 5 years, 10,276 acresNYNew York: none in the recordsMAMassachusetts: none in the recordsOROregon: 176 large fires in 5 years, 3,737,208 acresNVNevada: 46 large fires in 5 years, 566,200 acresWYWyoming: 55 large fires in 5 years, 1,007,527 acresSDSouth Dakota: 17 large fires in 5 years, 62,668 acresIAIowa: none in the recordsINIndiana: none in the recordsOHOhio: none in the recordsPAPennsylvania: 3 large fires in 5 years, 8,088 acresNJNew Jersey: 4 large fires in 5 years, 24,525 acresCTConnecticut: none in the recordsRIRhode Island: none in the recordsCACalifornia: 161 large fires in 5 years, 4,463,916 acresUTUtah: 34 large fires in 5 years, 345,105 acresCOColorado: 57 large fires in 5 years, 367,180 acresNENebraska: 20 large fires in 5 years, 274,087 acresMOMissouri: 2 large fires in 5 years, 4,461 acresKYKentucky: 4 large fires in 5 years, 8,556 acresWVWest Virginia: 2 large fires in 5 years, 7,223 acresVAVirginia: 8 large fires in 5 years, 31,646 acresMDMaryland: 2 large fires in 5 years, 3,200 acresDEDelaware: none in the recordsAZArizona: 140 large fires in 5 years, 1,482,369 acresNMNew Mexico: 59 large fires in 5 years, 1,587,600 acresKSKansas: 23 large fires in 5 years, 82,260 acresARArkansas: 1 large fires in 5 years, 1,169 acresTNTennessee: 1 large fires in 5 years, 1,000 acresNCNorth Carolina: 15 large fires in 5 years, 97,158 acresSCSouth Carolina: 3 large fires in 5 years, 18,010 acresDCDistrict of Columbia: none in the recordsOKOklahoma: 71 large fires in 5 years, 424,291 acresLALouisiana: 7 large fires in 5 years, 56,235 acresMSMississippi: 8 large fires in 5 years, 20,372 acresALAlabama: none in the recordsGAGeorgia: 2 large fires in 5 years, 5,647 acresHIHawaii: 9 large fires in 5 years, 56,062 acresTXTexas: 142 large fires in 5 years, 1,993,381 acresFLFlorida: 43 large fires in 5 years, 288,459 acres
  • below 3
  • 3 to below 8
  • 8 to below 34
  • 34 to below 108
  • 108 or more
  • not published

Colours are quintiles of the published states (large fires, 2021 to 2025). Select a state tile to set the form below.

Large fires by month of discovery

0200400600JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

All 50 states together, 2021 to 2025. Months are Jan to Dec.

Pre-filled values are Example data. Replace them with your own.

The place and the month
States with at least one large fire in the records.
The month your trucks run there.
Your freight
Whole number.
Your own average, dollars.
Your own guess. 100 if all.
Your own guess, 0 to 30.

Large fires started in this month, per year

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Large fires in the state, 5 years
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Fires started in this month
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Share of the state's large fires
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Acres burned by the state's large fires
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Your revenue through the state that month
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On routes a fire could affect
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Held up if routes are disrupted
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Pick a state and month.

Formula: fires per year = fires in the month / 5 years. Share = fires in the month / fires in the state. Revenue on affected routes = loads x revenue per load x share on routes. Held up = that revenue x disrupted days / 30. Integer cents, half up. The last three lines are a scenario from your own guesses, not a forecast. Nothing you type leaves this page.

The 14 states with the most large fires, by month

Number of fires by month of discovery, 2021 to 2025. Darker cells mean more fires.

Large wildfires by state and month of discovery, top 14 states
StateJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Alaska000171848170000
Idaho000128746029200
Oregon0001316814034100
California4110517455722432
Texas413371413214286506
Arizona20311184141147201
Washington0000014414318200
Montana20101451359311
Oklahoma07332011112500
New Mexico0371212101131000
Colorado12592611114213
Wyoming022006141911100
Nevada00102919122100
Florida1213772631100

Source: NIFC WFIGS Interagency Fire Perimeters, retrieved Oct 10, 2026. Fires discovered 2021 to 2025, 1,000 acres or more, state where the fire started.

States with 10 or more large fires

Click a heading to sort. 0 fires started in places outside the 50 states are not shown.

Large wildfires by state, 2021 to 2025
StateLarge firesPer yearAcres burned, thousandsLargest fire, acresBusiest month (fires)June to September share
Alaska28056.05,237233,008Jun (184)97.1%
Arizona14028.01,482180,757Jun (41)73.6%
California16132.24,464963,309Aug (57)87.6%
Colorado5711.4367137,758Jul (11)56.1%
Florida438.628833,131Mar (13)27.9%
Idaho17635.21,989187,185Jul (74)97.2%
Kansas234.68214,342Apr (11)4.3%
Minnesota132.68426,829May (4)15.4%
Montana10821.61,101171,130Jul (51)91.7%
Nebraska204.027468,000Apr (9)30.0%
Nevada469.2566132,604Jul (19)91.3%
New Mexico5911.81,588341,735Apr (12)42.4%
North Carolina153.09732,156Mar (4)20.0%
North Dakota234.612136,815Apr (7)4.3%
Oklahoma7114.242489,688Mar (33)7.0%
Oregon17635.23,737413,717Jul (81)97.2%
South Dakota173.46315,320Mar (4)47.1%
Texas14228.41,9931,054,153Mar (37)35.2%
Utah346.834573,721Jul (11)91.2%
Washington11823.61,482107,322Aug (43)98.3%
Wyoming5511.01,008196,368Aug (19)90.9%

Source: NIFC WFIGS, retrieved Oct 10, 2026. Acres burned = mapped GIS acres of those fires, in thousands. Busiest month = month with the most fires (earliest month on a tie).

On the national list at retrieval

Wildfire incidents on the list on Oct 10, 2026, ten states with the most large ones. Not live.

Wildfire incidents on the NIFC list at retrieval, by state
StateWildfire incidents on the listOf which 1,000 acres or moreLargest incident, acres
Oregon4121342,923
Washington2214172,906
Idaho1587,475
Montana19635,520
Colorado76102,007
California71429,993
Nevada4352,000
Wyoming927,325
Florida5217,000
New Mexico5215,956

Source: NIFC WFIGS current incidents, retrieved Oct 10, 2026. Includes incidents of any size and any containment; many are small or mostly contained.

What this number means

  • A state that has had many large fires in July and August is a state to plan buffer days for in those months.
  • Counts are fires, not highway closures. The number says when fire activity is common, not how often trucks were stopped.
  • Smoke and detours cost time even when the highway stays open. Air quality alerts are on the weather alerts page.

What to do about it

  • Mark the fire months for the states on your regular lanes and keep a detour in the load file.
  • Add fire-month buffer days to your delivery promises on lanes that cross the heavy states.
  • Check 511 and the state DOT before a run, and write down closures that delay a load, for a layover or force majeure conversation.

Questions

What counts as a large fire here?

A wildfire whose mapped perimeter is 1,000 GIS acres or more, from the NIFC interagency perimeter data, discovered from 2021 to 2025. Prescribed burns and smaller fires are left out. One fire is counted once, in the state where it started, even if it spread across a state line.

Does a large fire close a highway?

Not necessarily. Many fires burn far from roads, and some close a highway for hours or weeks. The page does not know which. State 511 sites and the DOT report closures; this page only says when and where large fires have been common.

Why does Alaska lead the count?

Alaska has the most large fires in the records, and many of its fires burn in remote country. Counts are fires, not road exposure. Read the state's months, not only its total.

Are older years complete?

The perimeter data is maintained by many agencies and may not be equally complete across years. Treat 2021 to 2025 as a record of mapped fires, not a census, and do not read a difference of a few fires between two states as a real difference.

How current is it?

The snapshot was retrieved Oct 10, 2026. The history covers fires discovered through December 31, 2025. The list of current incidents changes every day and is not live on this page.

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