The fastest-growing and most destructive fires in the US (2001 to 2020)

The most destructive and deadly wildfires in US history were also fast. Using satellite data, we analyzed the daily growth rates of more than 60,000 fires from 2001 to 2020 across the contiguous US. Nearly half of the ecoregions experienced destructive fast fires that grew more than 1620 hectares in 1 day. These fires accounted for 78% of structures destroyed and 61% of suppression costs ($18.9 billion). From 2001 to 2020, the average peak daily growth rate for these fires more than doubled (+249% relative to 2001) in the Western US. Nearly 3 million structures were within 4 kilometers of a fast fire during this period across the US. Given recent devastating wildfires, understanding fast fires is crucial for improving firefighting strategies and community preparedness.

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Related Dataset #1 : All-hazards dataset mined from the US National Incident Management System 1999-2020
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Author Balch, J. K.
Iglesias, V.
Mahood, A. L.
Cook, M.
Amaral, C.
DeCastro, Amy L.
Leyk, S.
McIntosh, T. L.
Nagy, R. C.
St. Denis, L.
Tuff, T.
Verleye, E.
Williams, A. P.
Kolden, C. A.
Publisher UCAR/NCAR - Library
Publication Date 2024-10-01T00:00:00
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Topic Category geoscientificInformation
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Metadata Date 2025-07-10T19:58:04.464390
Metadata Record Identifier edu.ucar.opensky::articles:42430
Metadata Language eng; USA
Suggested Citation Balch, J. K., Iglesias, V., Mahood, A. L., Cook, M., Amaral, C., DeCastro, Amy L., Leyk, S., McIntosh, T. L., Nagy, R. C., St. Denis, L., Tuff, T., Verleye, E., Williams, A. P., Kolden, C. A.. (2024). The fastest-growing and most destructive fires in the US (2001 to 2020). UCAR/NCAR - Library. https://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d75h7mkk. Accessed 02 August 2025.

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