Australian and New Zealand firefighters who spent 30 days battling Oregon’s largest wildfires are heading home this week, a symbolic marker of the turning point in a season that kept international mutual aid resources deployed for weeks. Their departure underscores the improving — if still active — national fire situation as September winds down.

The international crews assisted primarily on fires burning in the Mount Hood and Clackamas River area, including the Austin Fire and the Grasshopper Fire east of Mount Hood, which is now 96% contained at roughly 94,000 acres. International resources are typically released as national resource pressure eases and domestic crews can absorb the remaining workload.

National Situation: Still 50 Uncontained Large Fires

Despite the easing, the national picture is anything but wrapped up. As of September 18, according to the National Interagency Fire Center:

  • 22 large fires are currently active across 11 states
  • 50 uncontained large fires remain on the books
  • More than 12,000 personnel are assigned to incidents nationwide
  • Resources include 229 crews, 625 engines, and 70 helicopters

States with the most active large fires include Idaho (5 large fires), Texas (3), Oklahoma (3), Colorado (2), Montana (2), California (2), Oregon (1), Washington (1), Utah (1), New Mexico (1), and Arkansas (1).

Preparedness Level Drops to 3

NIFC eased the National Preparedness Level (NPL) to 3 from the Level 5 that held through most of August — when federal firefighting resources were fully committed for weeks at a stretch. The NPL operates on a scale from 1 (minimal activity) to 5 (maximum resource commitment), and Level 3 indicates substantial but not all-consuming national resource demand.

The drop from Level 5 has allowed some resources to shift from suppression to fuels treatment and forest health work — essential off-season tasks that had been deferred during the peak crisis.

Idaho’s Silver Fire Still Active

In Idaho, the Silver Fire continues to burn near Silver Dollar Peak in the Roman Nose area of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. Reported at 2,593 acres and only 30% contained, it is one of the more active remaining incidents in the Pacific Northwest and is drawing close monitoring from the Northern Rockies Coordination Center.

A Season That Tested the System

The 2026 fire season has been a stress test for the national firefighting system. International mutual aid, extended national preparedness at Level 5, and simultaneous multi-front operations across the West strained logistics, personnel, and equipment pipelines. As resources begin to demobilize and crews rotate toward their home units, the focus is shifting toward post-fire recovery, suppression repair, and preparation for the 2027 season.

Year-to-date, 56,289 fires have burned 8,523,213 acres nationally — 146% of the 10-year average acreage for this date.