Started on Jun 20, 2026.
United States todayLive
Green: vegetationBrown: already burnedOrange: fire right nowSentinel-2 · Copernicus
Red dots: heat detected by satellite in the last 48h. NASA FIRMS
Quick facts
- Location
- 23 miles northeast of Delta Junction, AK
- Cause
- Natural
- Complexity
- Type 5 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
- ModerateSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Running — Runs along the ground much faster than a person walks.
- Jurisdiction
- DNR · State land
Glossary: what each term means
Barely moving. Low, thin smoke.
Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.
Moves slowly, hugging the ground.
Spreads with low, steady flames.
Spreading evenly and steadily, with visible flame.
Fast and unpredictable.
Runs along the ground much faster than a person walks.
Grows along the sides, not head-on.
Moves against the wind or downhill, which makes it slower.
Climbs into the treetops and jumps crown to crown. It can't be attacked from the ground.
Climbs into the crowns in bursts and drops back down.
Whole trees flaring up like torches.
Single scattered trees flaring up whole, like torches.
Whole clumps of trees flaring at once.
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.
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 through timber with grass and understory, the active Shaw Fire has been active for 60 days in Southeast Fairbanks, Alaska, located 23 miles northeast of Delta Junction. The blaze has exhibited moderate, smoldering, and running behavior, consuming 3,459 acres of State land under the management of a Type 5 Incident Commander and the Department of Natural Resources at a cost of 12,467 dollars, with zero containment reported. Averaging approximately 58 acres of growth per day since its natural start on June 20, 2026, the incident unfolds against a regional backdrop where the typical fire season spans from June to October.
This fire occurs during a broader national landscape that has seen 2,943,064 hectares burned so far in 2026, a figure that remains 46 percent below the two-decade average for the country.
In context
This wildfire burned in Alaska for 72 days. In total it burned about 3,459 acres — around 14 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 3,216,925 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 41% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.
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Community reports
Reports from people near the fire · unverified
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Not official emergency information. In an emergency, contact fire services/authorities.
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