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Fuhr Gulch Fire (Colorado)

Ended · 100% containedCrews stopped it spreading on 100% of the perimeter. Not the same as out, and not 100% burned. · 1,650 acres (668 hectares) · Started · Updated

This fire in numbers29 days
668Hectares1,650Acres29Days it lasted
Containment100%

Started on Jul 21, 2026.

United States todayLive
105Active335Hotspots 48h1.4 MHectares
Last 7 days · steadyHow many named wildfires were burning on each of the last 7 days. It rises when there are more than on the earlier days.
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Fuhr Gulch Fire (Colorado) — Sentinel-2 true color Fuhr Gulch Fire (Colorado) — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego) 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

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

Quick facts

Location
3 miles southwest of Craig, CO
Cause
Natural
People working on it
33 people
Complexity
Type 4 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.
What's burning
Brush (2 feet)
How it's behaving
MinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Torching — Whole trees flaring up like torches.Crowning — Climbs into the treetops and jumps crown to crown. It can't be attacked from the ground.
Jurisdiction
Private 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 across private land with a Type 4 Incident management team of 33 personnel overseeing operations, the Fuhr Gulch Fire has consumed 1,650 acres since its natural ignition on July 21, 2026. Located three miles southwest of Craig, Colorado, within Moffat County, the blaze has maintained an average daily growth of approximately 83 acres per day over its 20-day burn period.

Fire behavior on the incident has been characterized by minimal, smoldering, torching, and crowning activity within two-foot brush fuels. Despite these active traits, the operation reached full containment at 100 percent, culminating in a total suppression cost of $340,000.

This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Nationally, the broader context shows 2,761,076 hectares burned so far in 2026, marking a figure that is 50 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire burned in Colorado for 28 days. In total it burned about 1,650 acres — around 6.7 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 3,243,965 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 41% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.

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