The Cottonwood Fire burning in Piute and Beaver counties, Utah has exploded in size to become the largest active wildfire in the United States — and is poised to become the most destructive fire in Utah history. As of Saturday, June 27, the fire had grown overnight from approximately 70,000 acres to more than 92,000 acres and remains at 0% containment, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
A Rapidly Escalating Disaster
The Cottonwood Fire ignited June 22, 2026, due to human activity approximately 5 miles west of Beaver, near State Route 153 in the Fishlake National Forest area. Within its first 24 hours the fire had surpassed 10,000 acres. By June 24 it exceeded 60,000 acres, and by June 26 it had burned 71,848 acres. Overnight growth of more than 20,000 additional acres brought the total above 92,000 acres by Saturday morning.
Fueled by record drought conditions, critically low relative humidity, and winds gusting to 30-50 mph in the fire area, fire behavior has been extreme and erratic, frequently grounding air support and hampering ground crews' efforts to establish containment lines.
State of Emergency Declared
Utah Governor Spencer Cox declared a state of emergency as the fire continued to expand. In anticipation of the July Fourth holiday weekend, Utah also issued statewide fireworks restrictions to prevent additional ignitions during already dangerous conditions. The Cottonwood Fire has prompted mandatory evacuations across multiple communities in Beaver and Piute counties.
National Resources Deployed
The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) has identified the Cottonwood Fire as the highest-priority fire in the nation, with firefighters, aircraft, and incident management teams converging on the area from across the country. NIFC noted in its June 26 situation report that precipitation over the fire area provided some moderation in fire behavior, but conditions remain extreme and fire growth is expected to continue.
What It Means for the Pacific Northwest
As the nation's fire resources are drawn toward the Cottonwood Fire and other large fires in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Alaska, the availability of crews and equipment for new starts in the Pacific Northwest may be reduced. Northwest fire managers are closely watching resource availability as Washington and Oregon enter what could be a difficult July and August fire season. Residents throughout the region are urged to report new smoke immediately by calling 911 and to follow all fire restrictions currently in effect on public lands.