Stubble Fire, Lawen, Oregon — Map & Containment

Stubble Fire, Lawen, Oregon — Sentinel-2 true color

Stubble Fire, Lawen, 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

Key facts

Source: NIFC

Location15 miles southwest of Lawen, OR

CauseNatural

What's burningShort Grass (1 foot)

How it's behavingMinimalCreeping — Moves slowly, hugging the ground.Smoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Flanking — Grows along the sides, not head-on.

ComplexityType 4 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.

JurisdictionUSFWS · Federal land

Cost so far$926,740

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

Burning for 18 days across Harney County, Oregon, the active Stubble Fire situated 15 miles southwest of Lawen has steadily consumed 15,673 acres of federal land managed by the USFWS, averaging roughly 871 acres per day since its natural ignition on July 23, 2026. Despite the broad footprint in short grass fuels typically susceptible during the region's June to October fire season, the incident currently demonstrates minimal, creeping, smoldering, and flanking fire behavior.

Fire suppression efforts involving a lone personnel under a Type 4 Incident management structure have successfully brought the containment of the blaze to 93 percent, accumulating a total cost of $926,740. This localized event unfolds against a broader national backdrop where 2,761,076 hectares have burned so far in 2026, tracking 50 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Oregon for 91 days. So far it has affected roughly 15,673 acres — about 63 km². At 93% containment, the fire is nearly under control.

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