corrected a figure and improved citations for it← Previous revisionRevision as of 08:16, 10 October 2026 Line 25: Line 25: By July 2026, despite a relatively slow start to the season, thousands of lightning strikes sparked numerous wildfires that expanded across north central Oregon, with many prompting immediate evacuations for areas many miles wide and catching firefighters off guard by the sudden and dramatic increase in activity, especially in [[Wheeler County, Oregon|Wheeler]], [[Gilliam County, Oregon|Gilliam]] and [[Baker County, Oregon|Baker]] counties.{{Cite news |last=Graff |first=Amy |date=2026-07-17 |title=Dozens of Wildfires Are Suddenly Burning in Oregon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/17/weather/oregon-wildfires-smoke-canada.html |access-date=2026-07-18 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web |last=Urness |first=Zach |title=With 23 wildfires burning, Oregon enters teeth of fire season |url=https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/wildfires/2026/07/17/oregon-2026-wildfire-season-ramps-up/90962300007/ |access-date=2026-07-18 |website=Statesman Journal |language=en-US}} Two major wildfire complexes occurred after most of the major wildfires merged, especially into the Crosswhite fire which quickly burned passed 100,000 acres. This fire was a part of the Rowe Creek Complex, and the Hay Creek Complex, a little farther north, also contained several large and rapidly growing fires due to extremely dry conditions and an ongoing heatwave.{{Cite news |last=Spoto |first=Maia |last2=Graff |first2=Amy |date=2026-07-18 |title=What to Know About Fires Caused by Lightning in the Pacific Northwest |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/18/us/what-to-know-fires-lightning-pacific-northwest.html |access-date=2026-07-19 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} Multiple west coast task forces and the [[Oregon National Guard]] were deployed to help fight these fires and other fires to the south, north, and east that were also showing significant growth.{{Cite web |title=West Coast task forces mobilized to fight Oregon fires |url=https://www.opb.org/article/2026/07/17/oregon-wildfire-fire-dry-creek-hoag-evans-creek-salmon/ |access-date=2026-07-19 |website=opb |language=en |archive-date=July 17, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260717234001/https://www.opb.org/article/2026/07/17/oregon-wildfire-fire-dry-creek-hoag-evans-creek-salmon/ |url-status=live }} Smoke from all of these wildfires contributed to widespread very unhealthy air quality, with the entire state having the worst air quality in the United States for a prolonged period, during which air quality advisories were issued.{{Cite web |last=Loew |first=Tracy |title=Much of Oregon under smoke, air quality advisories this weekend |url=https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/wildfires/2026/07/17/smoke-warnings-air-quality-advisories-issued-for-12-oregon-counties/90961476007/ |access-date=2026-07-19 |website=Statesman Journal |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Varma |first=Tanvi |date=2026-07-21 |title=Oregon DEQ issues air quality health advisory for multiple counties due to wildfire smoke |url=https://katu.com/news/local/oregon-deq-issuing-air-quality-health-advisory-for-portland-metro-smog-smoke-lungs-public-environmental-quality-purple-air-asthma |access-date=2026-07-22 |website=KATU |language=en |archive-date=July 28, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260728154541/https://katu.com/news/local/oregon-deq-issuing-air-quality-health-advisory-for-portland-metro-smog-smoke-lungs-public-environmental-quality-purple-air-asthma |url-status=live }} The Crosswhite fire also merged with the 28,000 acre Box Springs fire on July 28, bringing its total above 170,000 acres as crews continued to battle extreme fire weather conditions, primarily in the form of widespread [[Red flag warning|Red Flag warnings]] and more lightning storms sparking even more wildfires across the state, as over 2,000 lightning strikes occurred within only a few hours of each other.{{Cite web |last=Olle |first=Jaimie |date=2026-07-24 |title=Brewer & Box Springs Fires {{!}} July 24, 2026 |url=https://centraloregonfire.org/2026/07/24/brewer-box-springs-fires-july-24-2026/ |access-date=2026-07-24 |website=Central Oregon Fire Information |language=en-US |archive-date=July 24, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260724184153/https://centraloregonfire.org/2026/07/24/brewer-box-springs-fires-july-24-2026/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=2026-07-24 |title=Powerful storm sees 2,000 lightning strikes spark 35 wildfires in just hours in Central Oregon |url=https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/powerful-storm-sees-2000-lightning-strikes-spark-35-wildfires-in-just-hours-in-central-oregon/ |access-date=2026-07-24 |language=en-US |archive-date=July 25, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260725213835/https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/powerful-storm-sees-2000-lightning-strikes-spark-35-wildfires-in-just-hours-in-central-oregon/ |url-status=live }} By July 2026, despite a relatively slow start to the season, thousands of lightning strikes sparked numerous wildfires that expanded across north central Oregon, with many prompting immediate evacuations for areas many miles wide and catching firefighters off guard by the sudden and dramatic increase in activity, especially in [[Wheeler County, Oregon|Wheeler]], [[Gilliam County, Oregon|Gilliam]] and [[Baker County, Oregon|Baker]] counties.{{Cite news |last=Graff |first=Amy |date=2026-07-17 |title=Dozens of Wildfires Are Suddenly Burning in Oregon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/17/weather/oregon-wildfires-smoke-canada.html |access-date=2026-07-18 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web |last=Urness |first=Zach |title=With 23 wildfires burning, Oregon enters teeth of fire season |url=https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/wildfires/2026/07/17/oregon-2026-wildfire-season-ramps-up/90962300007/ |access-date=2026-07-18 |website=Statesman Journal |language=en-US}} Two major wildfire complexes occurred after most of the major wildfires merged, especially into the Crosswhite fire which quickly burned passed 100,000 acres. This fire was a part of the Rowe Creek Complex, and the Hay Creek Complex, a little farther north, also contained several large and rapidly growing fires due to extremely dry conditions and an ongoing heatwave.{{Cite news |last=Spoto |first=Maia |last2=Graff |first2=Amy |date=2026-07-18 |title=What to Know About Fires Caused by Lightning in the Pacific Northwest |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/18/us/what-to-know-fires-lightning-pacific-northwest.html |access-date=2026-07-19 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} Multiple west coast task forces and the [[Oregon National Guard]] were deployed to help fight these fires and other fires to the south, north, and east that were also showing significant growth.{{Cite web |title=West Coast task forces mobilized to fight Oregon fires |url=https://www.opb.org/article/2026/07/17/oregon-wildfire-fire-dry-creek-hoag-evans-creek-salmon/ |access-date=2026-07-19 |website=opb |language=en |archive-date=July 17, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260717234001/https://www.opb.org/article/2026/07/17/oregon-wildfire-fire-dry-creek-hoag-evans-creek-salmon/ |url-status=live }} Smoke from all of these wildfires contributed to widespread very unhealthy air quality, with the entire state having the worst air quality in the United States for a prolonged period, during which air quality advisories were issued.{{Cite web |last=Loew |first=Tracy |title=Much of Oregon under smoke, air quality advisories this weekend |url=https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/wildfires/2026/07/17/smoke-warnings-air-quality-advisories-issued-for-12-oregon-counties/90961476007/ |access-date=2026-07-19 |website=Statesman Journal |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Varma |first=Tanvi |date=2026-07-21 |title=Oregon DEQ issues air quality health advisory for multiple counties due to wildfire smoke |url=https://katu.com/news/local/oregon-deq-issuing-air-quality-health-advisory-for-portland-metro-smog-smoke-lungs-public-environmental-quality-purple-air-asthma |access-date=2026-07-22 |website=KATU |language=en |archive-date=July 28, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260728154541/https://katu.com/news/local/oregon-deq-issuing-air-quality-health-advisory-for-portland-metro-smog-smoke-lungs-public-environmental-quality-purple-air-asthma |url-status=live }} The Crosswhite fire also merged with the 28,000 acre Box Springs fire on July 28, bringing its total above 170,000 acres as crews continued to battle extreme fire weather conditions, primarily in the form of widespread [[Red flag warning|Red Flag warnings]] and more lightning storms sparking even more wildfires across the state, as over 2,000 lightning strikes occurred within only a few hours of each other.{{Cite web |last=Olle |first=Jaimie |date=2026-07-24 |title=Brewer & Box Springs Fires {{!}} July 24, 2026 |url=https://centraloregonfire.org/2026/07/24/brewer-box-springs-fires-july-24-2026/ |access-date=2026-07-24 |website=Central Oregon Fire Information |language=en-US |archive-date=July 24, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260724184153/https://centraloregonfire.org/2026/07/24/brewer-box-springs-fires-july-24-2026/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=2026-07-24 |title=Powerful storm sees 2,000 lightning strikes spark 35 wildfires in just hours in Central Oregon |url=https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/powerful-storm-sees-2000-lightning-strikes-spark-35-wildfires-in-just-hours-in-central-oregon/ |access-date=2026-07-24 |language=en-US |archive-date=July 25, 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260725213835/https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/powerful-storm-sees-2000-lightning-strikes-spark-35-wildfires-in-just-hours-in-central-oregon/ |url-status=live }} In the beginning of August, the [[National Interagency Fire Center]] and [[Oregon Department of Forestry]] were both reporting that the season-to-date cumulative wildfire acreage was over two million acres, making 2026 the state's most active wildfire season. This surpassed the previous record, set in [[2024 Oregon wildfires|2024]], when just over 2 million acres burned in Oregon.https://katu.com/news/local/wildland-firefighters-weekend-extreme-fire-conditions-oregon-record-season-northwest-interagency-coordination-center-nwcc-oregon-department-of-forestry In the beginning of August, the [[National Interagency Fire Center]] and [[Oregon Department of Forestry]] were both reporting that the season-to-date cumulative wildfire acreage was over two million acres, making 2026 the state's most active wildfire season. This surpassed the previous record, set in [[2024 Oregon wildfires|2024]], when 1.93 million acres burned in Oregon.{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Jennifer |date=2026-08-22 |title=Crews brace for weekend of extreme fire conditions as Oregon's record season drags on |url=https://katu.com/news/local/wildland-firefighters-weekend-extreme-fire-conditions-oregon-record-season-northwest-interagency-coordination-center-nwcc-oregon-department-of-forestry |access-date=2026-10-10 |website=KATU |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Tanet |first=John |date=2026-08-03 |title=Oregon's 2026 wildfire season is now the largest on record with nearly 2M acres burned |url=https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/wildfire/2026-oregon-worst-wildfire-season-on-record-1-99m-acres-burned/283-176b718c-4df4-418f-bfd5-257bebc5a3f7 |access-date=2026-10-10 |website=KGW8}} == List of wildfires == == List of wildfires ==