Chipmunk Fire (Florida)
True color
Fire (SWIR)
Infrared / SWIR (right): sees through smoke.
🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 red/brown = burned
🟠 orange = active fire
Imagery: Sentinel-2 (Copernicus). Drag to compare smoke vs. infrared.
Heat detections: NASA FIRMS (last 48h).
Quick facts
- Location
- 15 Miles W from Homestead, FL
- Cause
- Natural
- Personnel
- 11
- Complexity
- Type 4 Incident
- Fuel
- Tall Grass (2.5 feet)
- Behavior
- Minimal, Flanking, Running
- Jurisdiction
- NPS · Federal land
Burning across 17,000 acres in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the natural-cause Chipmunk Fire was located 15 miles west of Homestead. Over its six-day burning period, the incident expanded at an average daily growth of approximately 2,833 acres per day, eventually reaching 100 percent containment under the management of a Type 4 Incident Command and the National Park Service.
Fire behavior on the federal land featured minimal, flanking, and running activity fueled by 2.5-foot tall grass. Operations to secure the perimeter were supported by a modest team of 11 personnel, resulting in a total cost of $35,000 for the Type 4 incident.
This event unfolds within a broader regional context where the typical fire season spans from June to October. Nationally, 3,068,903 hectares have burned so far in 2026, marking a figure that is 44 percent below the two-decade average.
In context
This wildfire has been burning in Florida for 18 days. So far it has affected roughly 17,000 acres — about 69 km². The perimeter is 100% contained.
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 3,186,142 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 42% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.
We'll email you if it grows, containment advances, or it ends.
No account. One-click unsubscribe. · Privacy
Community reports
Reports from people near the fire · unverified
Be the first to report what is happening →
Not official emergency information. In an emergency, contact fire services/authorities.
More fires in Florida
- 22 FireEnded
- Mill Pond FireContained
- Mailbox FireContained
- National FireContained
- H2 FireActive
- South Canal- Lafayette (34) FireEnded