Some of the wildfires as seen from space during the height of the summer outbreak on July 9, 2008.
Statistics[3][4]
Total fires
6,255[1]
Total area
1,593,690 acres (6,449.4 km2)[2]
Impacts
Deaths
32 (13 firefighters)[5]
Non-fatal injuries
At least 93[6]
Damage
Over $651.5 million (2008 USD)[1]
Season
← 2007
2009 →
The 2008 California wildfire season was one of the most devastating in the state of the 21st century. While 6,255 fires occurred,[1] about two-thirds as many as in 2007, the total area burned— 1,593,690 acres (6,449.4 square kilometres)[2]—far exceeded that of previous years.[3]
By July 5, 2008, 328 wildfires were burning, and those fires were only 81% contained.[7] For the first time since 1977, the US military helped with ground-based firefighting, when Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger dispatched 400 California National Guard troops, including Chief Medical Officer Susan Pangelinan, to manage fire lines.[8] He said the number of fires had stretched the state's fire-fighting resources thin. "One never has resources for 1,700 fires. Who has the resources for that?" Schwarzenegger said, adding, "Something is happening, clearly. There's more need for resources than ever before... it's fire season all year round."[9]
^ abc"CAL FIRE 2008 Wildland Fire Summary" (PDF). CalFire. September 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 25, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
^ ab"California Wildfires and Acres for all Jurisdictions" (PDF). CalFire. August 24, 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2022. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
^ ab"National Report of Wildland Fires and Acres Burned by State 2008" (PDF). National Interagency Fire Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
^"Wildland Fire Accidents and Fatalities by Year" (PDF). National Interagency Fire Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 September 2008. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
^"2008 June Fire Siege" (PDF). Cal Fire. September 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
^Cite error: The named reference Cal fires 2008 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Military joining fire battles up, down California". NBC News. 2008-07-02. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
^Abdollah, Tami (2008-07-05). "'Critical day' for growing Goleta fire; Big Sur blaze only 5% contained". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2011-09-30. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
and 27 Related for: 2008 California wildfires information
the wildfires. Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2008wildfires in California. October 2007 Californiawildfires 2017 Californiawildfires October...
may also spark wildfires in areas that have seen past ignition. Examples of this are the 1999 Megram Fire, the 2008Californiawildfires.[citation needed]...
The 2010 Californiawildfires were a series of wildfires that were active in the state of California during the year 2010. During the year, a total of...
2007 Californiawildfire season saw at least 9,093 separate wildfires that charred 1,520,362 acres (6,152.69 km2) of land. Thirty of those wildfires were...
These included several large, notable wildfires, including the Rim Fire, which became California's 3rd largest wildfire. Below is a list of all fires that...
becoming both California's deadliest and most destructive wildfire on record. AccuWeather estimated the total economic cost of the 2018 wildfires at $400 billion...
The 2023 Californiawildfire season is a series of significant wildfires that burned in the U.S. state of California during the calendar year. According...
turn into wildfires. Modern forest management often engages in prescribed burns to mitigate risk and promote natural forest cycles. Wildfires are often...
The 2020 Californiawildfire season, part of the 2020 Western United States wildfire season, was a record-setting year of wildfires in California. By the...
The 2022 Californiawildfire season was a series of wildfires throughout the U.S. state of California. By the end of the year, a total of 7,667 fires had...
The 2021 Californiawildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned across the U.S. state of California. By the end of 2021 a total of 8,835 fires...
of notable wildfires. 2017 Knysna fires, South Africa 2021 Algeria wildfires 2021 Table Mountain fire, South Africa 2022 Moroccan wildfires 2024 Western...
Northern Californiawildfires, also known as the Northern California firestorm, North Bay Fires, and the Wine Country Fires were a series of 250 wildfires that...
fire is the 20th largest wildfire in California, since accurate records began in 1932. "Top 20 Largest CaliforniaWildfires" (PDF). CAL FIRE. Archived...
Tea Fire, was a wildfire that began on November 13, 2008, destroying 210 homes in the cities of Montecito and Santa Barbara, California, in the United...
The 2009 Californiawildfires were a series of 9,159 wildfires that were active in the US state of California, during the year 2009. The fires burned more...
fire remains one of the largest wildfires in California history and, as of January 2022, the ninth-largest wildfire in the state's modern history. According...
The 2019 Californiawildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned across the U.S. state of California as part of the 2019 wildfire season. By...
The 2004 Californiawildfires were a series of wildfires that were active in the state of California during the year 2004. In total, 7,898 fires burned...
The 2003 Californiawildfires were a series of wildfires that burned throughout the state of California during the year 2003. In total, 9,116 fires burned...
List of Californiawildfires 2005 Labor Day brush fire 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire 2014 Californiawildfires May 2014 San Diego County wildfires Ken Pimlott...
the Sylmar Fire, was a November 2008wildfire that resulted in the loss of 489 residences in Los Angeles, California, United States, the "worst loss of...
2000 Californiawildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned throughout the U.S. state of California during 2000. According to California Department...
740 km² on just its first day 2007 – October 2007 Californiawildfires2008 – Summer 2008Californiawildfires, second costliest in US history to extinguish...
Complex Fire, was the largest wildfire of the 2008Californiawildfire season. The complex fire originated as 11 separate wildfires, before merging into a single...
Global Information