Willow Fire, Leadville, Colorado (2026)

This fire in numbersDay 105

2,978Hectares7,359Acres105Days burning

Containment80%

Started on Jun 28, 2026. 20% of the perimeter still to contain.

United States todayLive

48Active720Hotspots 48h728 kHectares

Last 7 days · falling

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Willow Fire (Colorado) — Sentinel-2 true color

Willow Fire (Colorado) — 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

Red dots: heat detected by satellite in the last 48h. NASA FIRMS

Quick facts

Location: 6 miles west of Leadville, CO
Cause: Human
People working on it: 4 people
Complexity: Type 4 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: MinimalSmoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.Creeping — Moves slowly, hugging the ground.
Jurisdiction: USFS · Federal land

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.

Burning for 92 days near Leadville, Colorado, the active Willow Fire has maintained a steady trajectory across Lake County, averaging an approximate growth of 80 acres per day to reach a total footprint of 7,359 acres in a timber landscape featuring grass and understory. Driven by a human cause and managed by a Type 5 Incident Commander under USFS federal authority, the incident involves four personnel focused on containing the perimeter.

Fire behavior on the ground currently remains minimal, characterized by smoldering and creeping activity as the containment level reaches 80 percent. Despite this progress, operations continue to require substantial resources, with the cumulative cost to suppress the incident having reached $37 million.

This prolonged incident unfolds against a broader national backdrop where 3,288,995 hectares have burned across the country so far in 2026, tracking 40 percent below the two-decade average. The fire itself aligns with the region's typical fire season, which traditionally spans from June to October.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Colorado for 104 days. So far it has affected roughly 7,359 acres — about 30 km². About 80% of the perimeter is contained — over half is secured, though hotspots remain.

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