North Cayuse Fire, Mission, Oregon (2026)

This fire in numbersDay 98

1,978Hectares4,887Acres98Days burning

Containment97%

Started on Jul 4, 2026. 3% of the perimeter still to contain.

United States todayLive

49Active605Hotspots 48h802 kHectares

Last 7 days · falling

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North Cayuse Fire (Oregon) — Sentinel-2 true color

North Cayuse Fire (Oregon) — 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

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Within 100 kmSee on map →

Quick facts

Location: 15 miles east of Pendleton, OR
Cause: Human
People working on it: 3 people
Complexity: Type 3 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.
What's burning: Timber (Grass and Understory)
How it's behaving: MinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Backing — Moves against the wind or downhill, which makes it slower.
Jurisdiction: BIA · 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 across 4,887 acres of federal timber and grass understory in Umatilla County, Oregon, the active North Cayuse Fire has been smoldering and backing with minimal overall behavior for 37 days since its human-caused ignition on July 4, 2026. Located 15 miles east of Pendleton and near Mission, the Type 3 incident is managed by a Type 4 Incident Commander with a sparse crew of just 3 personnel, yet has achieved 97 percent containment while accumulating $7,600,000 in costs.

The fire's prolonged 37-day burn duration has yielded an average daily growth of approximately 132 acres per day. This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which spans from June to October. Nationally, the broader context shows 2,761,076 hectares burned so far in 2026, tracking 50 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Oregon for 97 days. So far it has affected roughly 4,887 acres — about 20 km². At 97% containment, the fire is nearly under control.

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