Second Street Fire, Benton City, Washington — Map & Containment: 1,149 Acres, 100% Contained

Second Street Fire, Benton City, Washington — Sentinel-2 true color

Second Street Fire, Benton City, Washington — 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

Key facts

Source: NIFC

Location1 mile southeast of Benton City, WA

CauseHuman

What's burningShort Grass (1 foot)

How it's behavingMinimalRunning — Runs along the ground much faster than a person walks.

ComplexityType 3 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.

JurisdictionPrivate land

Cost so far$600,000

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.

The story so far

The Second Street Fire near Benton City, Washington, burned a total of 1,149 acres over 33 days after igniting on September 25, 2026. Sparked by human activity, the fire advanced at an approximate average daily growth of 35 acres per day through short grass standing about one foot tall on private land in Benton County. Fire activity included minimal and running behavior before the incident ultimately reached 100 percent containment and ended.

A Type 3 Incident response deployed 128 personnel to manage the emergency, bringing total operational expenditures to about $600,000. The incident occurred during the region's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Across the country, a broader context shows 3,457,486 hectares burned so far in 2026, marking a figure that sits 37% below the two-decade average for the nation.