Grassland Case Studies
This content is part of a series on grassland fuels management prepared in collaboration by Colorado State Forest Service with support from Southern Rockies Fire Science Network (SRFSN) and Great Plains Fire Science Exchange (GPFSE).
The case studies below briefly touch on scenarios of wildfires impacting communities adjacent to grass-dominated landscapes and forested systems, where grass fuels can act as the primary carriers of fire. These case studies illustrate how grass fuels, especially in combination with dry conditions and strong winds, can drive intense fires that encroach upon and devastate communities.
Analyzing historical wildfire events is essential for enhancing our understanding of how to mitigate the risks associated with various fuel types and landscapes. This knowledge is critical for developing effective strategies to manage and reduce the potential hazards posed by these environments.
Explore Each Case Study
Panhandle Wildfires
(Smokehouse Creek Wildfire and Windy Deuce Wildfire)
Location: Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma
Date of ignition: February 26, 2024
Acres burned: 1,058,000+
In late February of 2024, the Texas Panhandle experienced a series of devastating wildfires fueled by extreme drought conditions, high temperatures and strong winds. The fires spread rapidly across the region, burning thousands of acres, destroying homes and agricultural lands, and forcing widespread evacuations. Emergency response teams from multiple agencies were deployed to contain the blazes, but the unpredictable wind patterns and dry vegetation made firefighting efforts challenging. The wildfires highlighted the ongoing vulnerability of the area to such disasters, emphasizing the need for enhanced fire management and mitigation strategies in the future. 138 homes burned, according to the report and more than 15,000 head of cattle perished.
The largest wildfire in Texas history, exceeding the size of Rhode Island, highlights the dynamics fire behavior in these landscapes. While wildfires commonly occur during the summer in much of Texas, the Panhandle region faces its highest fire risk in March. This is due to rising temperatures, strong winds sweeping across the flat terrain and the presence of dry, easily ignitable grass. Research suggests that climate change is likely causing the fire season to begin earlier and last longer, as the number of hot and dry days conducive to wildfires increases throughout the year.
Maui Wildfires
Location: Maui, Hawai’i
Date of ignition: August 8, 2023
Acres burned: 1,081
On the day of the Maui fires, high winds with gusts up to 80 mph were recorded on the leeward slope, driven by an unusually strong high-pressure system to the northwest and low humidity. These conditions, combined with katabatic winds and terrain funneling effects, accelerated and dried the winds, aligning Maui’s western coastal communities in a high-risk zone (NASA, 2023). The fire, believed to be ignited by downed power lines surrounded by dry vegetation, initially started on around 6:45 a.m. August 8th but reignited later in the day, rapidly spreading towards Lahaina due to strong easterly winds, which left little time for evacuation. On August 10th, the fire was fully contained, however 2,200 structures were lost.
Hawaiʻi’s fire risk has increased by 400% over the past century, largely due to a decline of vegetation management and livestock grazing on former agricultural lands, drought and the spread of non-native grasses, which burn easily and have altered the native landscapes (Abrahamson, 2013). Recent estimates suggest that about a quarter of the land area in Hawaiʻi (about a million acres) is now covered in combustible non-native grasses and shrubs (North American Invasive Species Management Association, 2023).
Marshall Fire
Location: Boulder County, Colorado
Date of ignition: December 30, 2021
Acres burned: 6,026
In late December, the Marshall Fire ignited in unincorporated Boulder County, driven by intense wind gusts of 70 to 100 mph, rapidly spread through Superior and Louisville, ultimately destroying 1,084 homes and damaging 179 other structures. The fire, caused by a powerline near Marshall, was fueled by strong downslope winds typical of the region, which carried embers across paved areas, igniting dry vegetation adjacent to buildings and vehicles, leading to an urban conflagration. First responders focused on evacuations as hurricane-force winds made fire suppression nearly impossible until the winds subsided late that evening. The fire’s severity was exacerbated by unusually wet conditions earlier in the year, which led to abundant grass growth, followed by a dry, warm summer and low fuel moisture, creating ideal conditions for the fire to spread quickly in the cured grass (Marshall Fire Facilitated Learning Analysis, 2021; Boulder County, 2023; Town of Superior, 2022).
High winds with occasional hurricane-force gusts, not unusual where the eastern plains meet the Rockies, atmospheric pressure dropped sharply to the east of the mountains, followed by strong downslope winds (Marshall Fire Facilitated Learning Analysis, 2021). This wind event, sometimes referred to as a mountain wave, generally occurs within a narrow region along the foothills and adjacent plains of Colorado and is responsible for much of the high wind events for the area. During a mountain wave, winds flow downslope along the eastern terrain of the Colorado Rocky Mountains and accelerate in speed as it approaches the base (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2023).
Slave Lake Wildfire
Location: Alberta, Canada
Date of ignition: November 27, 2011
Acres burned: 21,048
In 2011, two wildfires ignited within an hour of each other in Alberta, exacerbated by seasonal Chinook winds and a lack of snow cover, which exposed fully-cured grasses and agricultural cropland fuels. These conditions, typical of the region, made the landscape highly susceptible to fire spread. Less than a year later, in 2012, two additional major wildfires occurred under similar conditions.
The region’s fuels are dominated by agricultural croplands, native grasses, and river valleys with intermixed woody vegetation, which cure in the fall and remain dormant through winter and early spring. While grasses are less combustible during the summer growing season, they become highly fire-prone in the spring and fall, particularly under snow-free conditions. At the time of the Slave Lake fire, fuels were believed to be 100% cured, making them especially responsive to sudden changes in wind strength and direction. This led to rapid fire spread and flame heights of up to 9 feet, overwhelming fire suppression efforts in an environment characterized by fine, dry fuels and strong winds.
Cross Plains Fire
Location: Cross Plains, Texas
Date of ignition: December 27, 2005
Acres burned: 6,835
In 2005 a fire quickly spread across the northern plains of Texas, fueled primarily by grasses from suburban lawns and surrounding plains. The region had experienced an unusually wet spring and summer, followed by a severe drought in the fall. On December 27, a critical fire weather event exacerbated the situation, with a cold front and dry line causing winds exceeding 29 mph, gusts up to 38 mph and relative humidity dropping to 12%. These conditions led to extreme fire behavior, with flame lengths over 30 feet and spread rates exceeding 324 feet per minute. Despite the relatively flat terrain, the fire easily breached highways and spotted thousands of feet ahead of the fire front (Gray at al., 2007).
Babb Fire
Location: Malden, Washington
Date of ignition: September 7, 2020
Acres burned: 15,266
Near midnight in September of 2020, a wind-driven wildfire ignited near Malden in South Spokane County, Washington, burning over 15,000 acres and destroying 121 homes and 8 commercial buildings. The fire was caused by a branch contacting a powerline, and its rapid spread was fueled by extreme weather conditions. Four days prior, the National Weather Service had warned of potential fire hazards over Labor Day weekend, with predictions of low humidity, high winds and a Red Flag Warning issued on September 6. On September 7, residents noticed smoke around noon, and within three hours, the fire had traveled thirteen miles, destroying 223 structures and consuming 80% of Malden. The fire’s intensity and spread were exacerbated by high winds and dry fuels, resulting in extensive damage within 24 hours (Borsum et al., 2020).
Camp Fire
Location: Paradise, California
Date of ignition: November 8, 2018
Acres burned: 153,336
On the morning of November 8, high winds ignited a wildfire near the town of Paradise, triggered by a downed power line that quickly spread through dry fine fuels of grasses, leaves, dead brush, pine needles and other fine fuels. While this wildfire is not considered a grassfire, the fire’s spread was fueled by grasses that had dried out over the summer, further intensified by windborne firebrands and embers, igniting additional areas with drought-stressed vegetation and dry fuels. The fire rapidly spread through a landscape of mixed conifer forest, brush, grass and dry surface fuels, exacerbated by persistently low humidity and delayed fall rains (Maranghides et al., 2023).
Embers, carried by winds up to 50 mph, fueled the fire’s rapid expansion, devastating the communities of Pulga, Magalia, and Concow before reaching Paradise, which was largely destroyed within hours. The fire, driven by seasonal winds, burned over 153,000 acres, destroyed 18,804 structures, including 13,696 homes.
Additional Wildfires
Additional recent significant wildfires where grass fuels served as a primary driver of spread:
- Location: Oklahoma
- Date of Ignition: March 2017
- Acres burned: 198,000
- Location: Kansas
- Date of Ignition: March 6, 2017
- Acres burned: 743,000
- Location: Montana
- Date of Ignition: July 24, 2017
- Acres burned: 160,000
- Location: Oklahoma
- Date of Ignition: April 12, 2018
- Acres burned: 120,000
- Location: Lake County, California
- Date of Ignition: June 23, 2018
- Acres burned: 16,000
- Location: Colorado
- Date of Ignition: June 27, 2018
- Acres burned: 108,000
- Location: Sonoma County, California
- Date of Ignition: October 23, 2019
- Acres burned: 77,000