Bradeen Hill Fire, Rice, Washington

True view Fire view

⟷

True view (left): as the eye sees it.
Fire view (right): infrared (SWIR), sees through smoke and brings out the heat.

🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 brown = already burned
🟠 orange = fire right now

Drag to compare: normal photo on the left, heat brought out on the right.

Green: vegetationBrown: already burnedOrange: fire right nowSentinel-2 · Copernicus

Key facts

Source: NIFC

Location17 miles southwest of Colville, WA

CauseHuman

What's burningTimber (Grass and Understory)

How it's behavingMinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Creeping — Moves slowly, hugging the ground.Isolated Torching — Single scattered trees flaring up whole, like torches.

ComplexityType 1 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.

JurisdictionPrivate land

Cost so far$12.1 million

Glossary: what each term means

Minimal

Barely moving. Low, thin smoke.

Smoldering

Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.

Creeping

Moves slowly, hugging the ground.

Moderate

Spreads with low, steady flames.

Active

Spreading evenly and steadily, with visible flame.

Extreme

Fast and unpredictable.

Running

Runs along the ground much faster than a person walks.

Flanking

Grows along the sides, not head-on.

Backing

Moves against the wind or downhill, which makes it slower.

Crowning

Climbs into the treetops and jumps crown to crown. It can't be attacked from the ground.

Short Crown Runs

Climbs into the crowns in bursts and drops back down.

Torching

Whole trees flaring up like torches.

Isolated Torching

Single scattered trees flaring up whole, like torches.

Group Torching

Whole clumps of trees flaring at once.

Spotting

Wind carries embers through the air and starts new fires ahead of the front: that is how a fire jumps a road or a firebreak.

Wind Driven Runs

The wind pushes it in long runs in one direction.

The ones marked ● are the behaviors that make a fire harder to stop. They are not a warning or an instruction: they are the description written by the agency in charge. For decisions, always follow your emergency services.

The story so far

Summary written on Oct 21, while the fire was still active. It has since ended — the figures above are current.

Burning for 88 days with an approximate daily expansion of 50 acres, the human-caused Bradeen Hill Fire has reached 4,417 acres in Stevens County, Washington, located 17 miles southwest from Colville near Rice. The incident has now achieved 100 percent containment under a Type 4 Incident Commander, managed alongside a Type 1 Incident complexity level.

Fire behavior is currently minimal, characterized by smoldering, creeping, and isolated torching within timber, grass, and understory fuels on private land. A total of 32 personnel remain assigned to the operation, bringing the cumulative cost of the incident to $12,100,000.

This event unfolds against a broader national backdrop where 3,430,104 hectares have burned across the country so far in 2026, marking a figure 37 percent below the two-decade average for a typical fire season that spans from June to October.