Hancock - Texas Flat Road Fire (MS)

Active · 80% contained · 408 acres · started 2026-08-21 · updated 2026-08-23

Hancock - Texas Flat Road Fire (MS) — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego)

True color Fire (SWIR)

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True color (left): as the eye sees it.
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: 6 Miles SE from Picayune, MS
Personnel: 6
Complexity: Type 5 Incident
Fuel: Southern Rough
Behavior: Active
Jurisdiction: Private land

Burning through Southern Rough fuels on private land, the active Hancock - Texas Flat Road Fire located six miles southeast of Picayune, Mississippi, in Hancock County has maintained an average daily growth of approximately 240 acres per day. Over its two days of burning, the blaze has consumed 480 acres while exhibiting extreme fire behavior. Containment efforts led by five personnel operating under a Type 5 Incident management structure and a Type 5 IC have reached 80 percent containment, with the total cost of the response reaching $96,000 since the fire started on August 21, 2026.

This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Meanwhile, the broader national landscape reflects a different trajectory, with 2,982,133 hectares burned across the country so far in 2026, marking a figure that is 46 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Mississippi for 2 days. So far it has affected roughly 408 acres — about 1.7 km². About 80% of the perimeter is contained — over half is secured, though hotspots remain.

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