Camp Creek Fire, Montana (2026)

This fire in numbersDay 26

3,936Hectares9,725Acres26Days burning

Containment0%

Started on Aug 21, 2026. 100% of the perimeter still to contain.

United States todayLive

105Active382Hotspots 48h1.4 MHectares

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Camp Creek Fire (Montana) — Sentinel-2 true color

Camp Creek Fire (Montana) — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego)

True view Fire view

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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

Red dots: heat detected by satellite in the last 48h. NASA FIRMS

Active fires nearby1 · 100 km

47KM NSilvertip Fire7,280 acres · 15% contained

Within 100 kmSee on map →

Quick facts

Location: 25 miles northeast of Seeley Lake, MT
Cause: Natural
People working on it: 1 people
Complexity: Type 3 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.
What's burning: Timber (Litter and Understory)
How it's behaving: MinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.
Jurisdiction: USFS · Federal land

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.

Burning for 15 days across 9,725 acres in Powell County, Montana, the active Camp Creek Fire is currently spreading at an approximate rate of 648 acres per day 25 miles northeast of Seeley Lake. Managed by a Type 4 Incident Commander with 30 personnel under a Type 3 Incident complexity, the federal fire on USFS land was sparked by natural causes on August 21, 2026, and remains zero percent contained.

Fueled by timber, litter, and understory, the fire exhibits minimal, creeping, and smoldering behavior. Operations to manage the incident have reached a cost of $675,000.

This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Across the country, 3,177,542 hectares have burned so far in 2026, placing the national burned area 42 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Montana for 25 days. So far it has affected roughly 9,725 acres — about 39 km². Crews report no containment yet, so the fire can still spread.

In the Northern Hemisphere, wildfire activity usually peaks during the warm, dry months — roughly May through October.