Spokane’s fire history

It’s been a tough and disastrous wildfire season for the U.S. and other parts of the world. The recent wildfire outbreak in Spokane is now the worst disaster for this area in modern history. As of the weekend, three major blazes have consumed more than 10,000 acres and destroyed nearly 1,000 structures that include homes, barns, outbuildings and sheds. More than 60,000 people had to be evacuated when the blazes broke out.

The three major Spokane blazes that the Old Trails fire, Autumn Lane fire and the Fairview Fire exploded Aug. 1 as high winds spewed embers that moved into neighborhoods within hours. It has been shocking and heartbreaking to see some of the photos and videos of raging infernos.

The extremely dry conditions around the Inland Northwest have also fueled the fires as very little moisture has fallen in the Spokane area since the end of June when only 0.07 inches was measured on the 28th. Currently, Spokane and other locations are reporting about 60-66% of normal precipitation for 2026. There is a chance of some showers next week, but the long-range computer models are continuing to indicate that we’ll have drier than normal weather over the next several weeks as a strong ridge of high pressure continues to dominate the western U.S. 

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, there have been close to 46,000 fires in the U.S. since Jan. 1. This is the highest figure in the last 10 years. Last year, 2025, was the next highest with about 43,000 blazes. However, the number of acres that have been consumed so far this year is approximately 6.3 million, which the highest to date within the last 10 years.

As of the weekend, the state with the highest number of wildfires is Oregon with about 26 active large fires. Washington, including the three major blazes that are still less than 40% contained, has 19. Idaho has eight major fires as of the weekend.

Last Friday, Idaho Governor Brad Little and U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz emphasized that resources for fighting fires in the western U.S. have been “stretched thin.” The continuation of hot weather, dry winds, low humidity, and tinder-dry brush has made for hazardous conditions that are placing huge demands on firefighters and equipment.

Western wildfires have become more widespread, especially in recent decades. Many of the major and destructive blazes have occurred in California. The state’s first “gigafire” was the August Complex and consumed over 1 million acres across the coastal ranges of California between Aug. 16 and 18 in 2020. It was the state’s largest blaze as more than 12,000 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were reported that ignited the massive disaster.

There have been other major wildfires in the Spokane area. The two most notable ones were the Great Spokane Fire in 1889 and the Spokane Firestorm in 1991. The Great Spokane Fire occurred in the evening Aug. 4, 1889, and spread rapidly across the city. With many of the buildings constructed with wood and the failure of the city’s water system, the massive blaze destroyed most of Spokane’s downtown area, which was called Spokane Falls in that year. Spokane’s downtown area was quickly rebuilt with more fire-resistant materials such as brick and stone.

Spokane had another major fire disaster more than 100 years later. On Oct. 16, 1991, very dry conditions combining with very strong winds helped to ignite the Spokane Firestorm. Numerous fires were started from downed power lines. Dozens of separate fires destroyed more than 100 homes.

The worst fire in the northwestern region occurred Aug. 20-21, 1910. The “Great Fire of 1910,” or the “Big Blow Up,” was a massive wildfire that burned three million acres in only two days across northeastern Washington, the panhandle of northern Idaho and western Montana. In the spring and summer of that year, conditions were extremely dry and hot. In 1910, small fires were set from hot cinders flung from locomotives, sparks, and lightning from isolated thunderstorms. Then on Aug. 20, the weather system brought hurricane-force winds that whipped many of those small blazes into the gigantic inferno.

In terms of our local weather, with the strong high-pressure system expected to hold on, as I mentioned, very little moisture is expected over the next few weeks, probably through the end of the month. With the strengthening El Nino in the waters of the south-central Pacific Ocean, this potential “Godzilla El Nino” could be the strongest since 1877. Some scientists are also saying that it could be the strongest in 500 to 1,000 years. Regardless, forecasts of more heat, drought and other extremes are likely to persist through at least 2027.

Based on historical weather patterns, rainfall across the southern portion of the country should increase in the coming months. Eventually, some of that moisture may work its way northward into our region leading to wetter weather. However, the air masses are often warmer, so winter snowfalls are less than average. As usual, time will tell.

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Contact Randy Mann at [email protected].