Big Mountain Fire (Utah)
Satellite image: NASA MODIS (infrared — active fire in orange/red, from yesterday).
Heat detections: NASA FIRMS (last 48h).
Quick facts
- Location
- 5 Miles SW from Elberta, UT
- Cause
- Natural
- Personnel
- 56
- Complexity
- Type 4 Incident
- Fuel
- Chaparral (6 feet)
- Behavior
- Active, Wind Driven Runs
- Jurisdiction
- BLM · Federal land
Driven by wind and fueled by six-foot chaparral, the active Big Mountain Fire is burning five miles southwest of Elberta, Utah, in Utah County. Currently uncontained at 400 acres, the Type 4 incident is being managed by a Type 4 Incident Commander and 56 personnel from the Bureau of Land Management, with operations totaling $150,000 in costs on federal land.
Satellites have detected four heat signatures near the fire perimeter over a 48-hour window, capturing the extent of the active, wind-driven runs. The blaze, which was ignited by natural causes on August 23, 2026, burns within a regional fire season that typically spans from June to October.
This incident unfolds during a broader national fire year in which 2,993,191 hectares have burned so far in 2026, tracking 45% below the two-decade average.
In context
This wildfire burned in Utah for 2 days. In total it burned about 400 acres — around 1.6 km².
In the Northern Hemisphere, wildfire activity usually peaks during the warm, dry months — roughly May through October.
The bigger picture in United States
Across United States, roughly 3,177,542 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 42% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.
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