Smoke from Idaho: the Most Destructive Fire in American History

The August of the driest year in Idaho history hosted a cold front that produced hurricane-force winds and a wide-spread lightning storm. The combination of worst-case-scenario fuel dryness, wind speed, and lightning ignitions nursed a behemoth fire that ravaged the forests of northern Idaho and Washington with complete disregard to the firefighting effort. The “Big Burn” of 1910 consumed over 3 million acres, earning the distinction of being the largest fire in American history, a title it holds to this day – over 100 years later.

The numbers are startling, truly difficult to grasp. In 2 days an estimated 1000-3000 individual fires burned 3 million acres of forest, killed 86 people (including 2 men who committed suicide when the hellish fire couldn’t be outrun), and created a cloud of smoke reaching as far north as Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, as far south as Denver, and clear east into New York state. If all the lumber burned was put on 1 train it would stretch 2,400 miles long – roughly the distance between Boise and New York City. The massive loss of forest is still felt today, and many areas have still not recovered due to massive amounts of soil erosion from rain wash-outs.

The Big Burn of 1910 serves as a lesson and a grave warning. The possibility of another catastrophic fire is always present if the right set of conditions comes together. The combination of drought conditions that dry vegetation, widespread electric storms that cover a large area with scattered ignitions, and winds that blow with enough power to push flames over fire lines or mountain ranges will surely bring a huge fire. Our fire suppression tactics and technology have advanced greatly since 1910, but we can’t control fires, only manipulate them in ways that hopefully reduce damage to property and natural resources. The struggle to control fire is made harder by the effects of global climate change which has increased the global temperature, lengthened the dry season in many places, and has also altered wind circulation patterns.  Experts believe that these phenomena will most likely result in more severe and numerous wildfires. Although we haven’t yet seen another fire like the Big Burn of 1910 and our technology is much more advanced, there is still always a chance - especially with the added effects of Global warming - that all of the necessary conditions come together and ignite a monstrous fire like the Big Burn. Man’s most valiant efforts to control nature can be completely overwhelmed by an especially dry, windy fire.