Upper Smith Fire, Bonners Ferry, Idaho

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

Location6 miles west of Porthill, ID

CauseNatural

What's burningTimber (Litter and Understory)

How it's behavingMinimalCreeping — Moves slowly, hugging the ground.Smoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.

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

JurisdictionUSFS · Federal land

Cost so far$33.1 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

Burning for 59 days with an average daily growth of approximately 82 acres per day, the 4,848-acre Upper Smith Fire remains active six miles west of Porthill, Idaho, in Boundary County near Bonners Ferry. Currently 41 percent contained by 101 personnel under a Type 3 Team managing this Type 4 Incident, the federal USFS blaze on federal land exhibits minimal, backing, creeping, and smoldering fire behavior within timber, litter, and understory fuels. The natural-cause fire has accumulated a cost of $32,593,085.

This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which runs from June to October. Across the country, a broader context frames the season, with 3,178,795 hectares burned so far in 2026, marking a total that is 42 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Idaho for 106 days. So far it has affected roughly 4,848 acres — about 20 km². Crews have contained 41% of the perimeter, but most of the fire line is still open.

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