Tartar Fire, Weiser, Idaho — Map & Containment

Tartar Fire, Weiser, Idaho — Sentinel-2 true color

Tartar Fire, Weiser, Idaho — 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

Location21 miles northwest of Weiser, ID

CauseNatural

What's burningShort Grass (1 foot)

How it's behavingMinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Isolated Torching — Single scattered trees flaring up whole, like torches.

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

JurisdictionPrivate land

Cost so far$25.0 million

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

Following a protracted 90-day campaign that averaged 1,756 acres of spread per day, the naturally caused Tartar Fire in Washington County, Idaho, has officially ended. Burning primarily through short grass approximately 21 miles northwest of Weiser, the blaze ultimately consumed 158,027 acres of private land.

By the time a Type 3 Incident management team brought the fire to 100 percent containment, operations involved 41 personnel and accrued costs totaling about $25 million. In its final stages, fire behavior was characterized as minimal, smoldering, and marked only by isolated torching.

This incident unfolded against the backdrop of Idaho's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Across the country, 2026 has seen a total of 3,442,406 hectares burned so far, tracking 37% below the two-decade average.