Virginia Fire Map: Track Virginia Wildfires Live in 2026

A Virginia fire map covers a state with two fire seasons and a strict spring burning law: the Virginia Department of Forestry responds to about 700 wildfires burning just under 9,500 acres in an average year, most of them started by escaped debris burning in the Blue Ridge and Appalachian counties.

What does a Virginia fire map show right now?

A Virginia fire map fuses official NIFC incident records and interagency WFIGS perimeters, NASA VIIRS and MODIS thermal detections, NOAA GOES heat detections and National Weather Service fire-weather alerts into one live view. US Wildfire Tracker shows all four free in any browser, refreshing automatically every few minutes while the tab stays open.

Virginia's fire count is modest by national standards — a ten-year average of about 700 fires and just under 9,500 acres — but it is unusually consistent, with two distinct seasonal peaks rather than one long fire year. More than 60 homes and other structures are damaged or destroyed in a typical year, even as suppression crews are credited with directly protecting more than 460 homes and 280 other structures worth over $60 million.

US Wildfire Tracker scores each detection on whether an official NIFC record is linked, how fresh the perimeter is and how recent the satellite heat is, hiding weak signals below 25 percent probability by default — useful in a state where the leading cause of wildfire is escaped debris burning rather than lightning.

When is Virginia's wildfire season?

Virginia has two wildfire seasons, and the Department of Forestry explains why both exist: "In the spring, vegetation still dormant from the winter provides a ready fuel source. As temperatures rise, conditions become more favorable for fires to start and spread. The opposite occurs in the fall. Frost-killed vegetation and fallen leaves increase the availability of forest fuels."

The statutory spring window for Virginia's 4 PM Burning Law runs February 15 through April 30. The fall season runs roughly October 15 through November 30 — shorter than spring, but capable of producing Virginia's largest individual fires, as it did in 2016 and again in 2023.

That two-season pattern, and the Appalachian fall risk in particular, is shared with neighboring states. Our North Carolina fire map guide covers the same fall mountain fire window, and the fire tracker guide explains how season timing varies region by region.

Which agencies fight wildfires in Virginia?

The Virginia Department of Forestry (DOF) "is charged with the protection of Virginia's forest resources from fire," with a resource protection program built to prevent loss of life, minimize property damage and protect natural resources — every member of the agency has fire responsibilities.

On federal land, including the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests and Shenandoah National Park, the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service manage their own suppression; Virginia's largest recent fire, the Matts Creek Fire, burned on Jefferson National Forest land under U.S. Forest Service jurisdiction rather than DOF's.

The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM), created in 1973, coordinates the broader state response when a wildfire threatens communities at scale, and interagency mobilization for major incidents runs through the Southern Area Coordination Center in Atlanta.

Where do Virginia wildfires usually burn?

Southwest and western Virginia carry most of the state's serious wildfire risk — the Blue Ridge, the Shenandoah Valley and the Appalachian counties along the Kentucky and West Virginia borders, where steep terrain, dense forest and rural homes sit close together. NWS Blacksburg's own fire-weather criteria treat the Blue Ridge as a meaningful dividing line, applying a stricter standard for counties east of it.

Central and eastern Virginia see fewer and generally smaller fires, mostly tied to debris burning on flatter terrain. Southwest Virginia carries an added burden after Hurricane Helene: downed timber across the region increased fuel loads and complicated access for crews, a challenge DOF expects to persist for years.

What are the largest wildfires in Virginia's recent history?

Virginia's largest fires cluster in the fall, on national forest and national park land where steep terrain slows containment. The Matts Creek Fire, which burned on Jefferson National Forest land in fall 2023, reached 11,016 acres — described in state reporting at the time as the largest in Virginia by far.

Virginia's own fall-season statistics show how unusual a year like 2023 or 2016 is: the state's fall fire season (October 15–November 30) burned 13,902 acres statewide in 2023 and 16,837 acres in 2016 — both roughly ten times the totals of quieter years like 2019 (242 acres) or 2021 (330 acres). The 2023 total does not include the Matts Creek Fire, since it burned on federal rather than state-protected land.

For national scale, NIFC recorded 77,850 wildfires and 5,131,474 acres across the entire United States in 2025 — Virginia's largest single fires are still small next to a Western megafire, but they are exceptional events by the state's own record.

How does Virginia's 4 PM Burning Law work?

Virginia's 4 PM Burning Law, codified at Code of Virginia Section 10.1-1142(B), makes it unlawful, each day from February 15 through April 30, to burn brush, leaves, grass, debris or dry-grass fields located within 300 feet of woodland, brushland or a field containing dry grass or other flammable material — except between 4:00 p.m. and midnight. Violating it is a Class 3 misdemeanor per offense, and a person whose fire escapes is also liable for the cost of suppression.

A separate, year-round rule in the same statute requires anyone who builds or uses an open-air fire within 150 feet of woodland, brushland or a dry-grass field to fully extinguish it before leaving and never leave it unattended — a distinct obligation from the 300-foot, February–April, 4 p.m. rule above.

What weather drives Virginia fire danger?

Three National Weather Service offices issue fire weather guidance for Virginia: Blacksburg covers the southwest and Blue Ridge, Wakefield covers the coastal plain and Hampton Roads, and Sterling covers Northern Virginia and the D.C. region.

Fuel moisture

10-hour fuel moisture of 7 percent or less.

Humidity

Relative humidity below 30 percent.

Wind

Sustained wind of 20 mph or greater.

Temperature

Above 40°F, required in addition to the above for counties east of the Blue Ridge.

Those criteria, confirmed consistently by both the Blacksburg and Wakefield offices, are meaningfully stricter on wind than many neighboring states' Red Flag thresholds — a reflection of how much Virginia's mountain terrain accelerates fire spread once wind exceeds that level.

How do evacuations work in Virginia?

Virginia does not have a statewide wildfire-specific evacuation-level system. VDEM's only named, mapped evacuation-zone program, "Know Your Zone," is a hurricane and coastal-storm tool covering roughly 1.25 million residents in Coastal Virginia — it does not apply to wildfire.

For wildfire, evacuation instructions are issued locally by county and municipal officials working with the Department of Forestry and local fire departments, based on the specific fire's behavior and terrain. County emergency management channels are the authoritative source during an active fire.

A live fire map is a situational-awareness tool for deciding whether to pay closer attention to a nearby fire — not a substitute for an official evacuation order from local authorities.

How do you read a Virginia fire map fast?

In Virginia the recurring question is whether a fire sits inside the 4 p.m. burning-law window or has escaped it, and whether it is on the steep, forested terrain where Virginia's largest fires have historically grown.

1. Open the live fire map and filter to Virginia, or use "fires near me" to list incidents within a set distance in miles of your location.
2. Check the probability tier first. A low-confidence detection with no NIFC record attached is often a permitted after-4 p.m. burn rather than an active wildfire.
3. Open the fire and compare "Last NIFC update," "Last satellite heat" and "Last GOES heat" — fires on Blue Ridge and national forest terrain can outrun a stale perimeter quickly.
4. Check acres and containment together, and note whether the fire sits in southwest or western Virginia, where most serious activity concentrates.
5. Look for a Red Flag Warning polygon, and check the season and time of day before planning any outdoor burning of your own.
6. For evacuation status, go to your county emergency management channel, and use the directions-away links if you need to leave.

Our fire tracker guide explains the latency behind each data layer in detail, and the wildfire tracking guide covers setting up alerts before a fire is close enough to see.

What does wildfire smoke do to Virginia air quality?

Smoke from Virginia wildfires is measured on the same EPA Air Quality Index used nationwide. Fall fires on the Blue Ridge and in Shenandoah National Park can settle smoke into mountain valleys overnight, reducing visibility on rural roads well before regional air-quality monitors register a health warning.

The added Hurricane Helene fuel load across southwest Virginia raises the odds of longer-burning fires in future fall seasons, which is also likely to mean longer periods of valley smoke in the counties DOF has flagged as facing years of elevated debris.

FAQ about the Virginia fire map