Virginia, 1999

Wildfire in Virginia, November 15 to 21, 1999

November 15 to 21, 1999 · NWS LWX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Drought conditions over the past 18 months made the forests of western Virginia dangerously dry and contributed to the fast spread of three wildfires. The first and largest fire began on the Madions and Greene County line in Shenandoah National Park just east of Skyline Drive.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS LWX wrote it up.

Drought conditions over the past 18 months made the forests of western Virginia dangerously dry and contributed to the fast spread of three wildfires. The first and largest fire began on the Madions and Greene County line in Shenandoah National Park just east of Skyline Drive. It spread into a small portion of the Rapidan Wildlife Management Area and the Bootens Gap area before being controlled at 1545 acres. Several walking trails and 4 miles of the Appalachian Trail were closed and smoke was visible up to 30 miles away from the blaze. 230 fire fighters and 3 helecopters were needed to bring the fire under control. Another fire in Page County just south of Luray in Shenandoah National Park burned 850 acres of the Dog Slaughter Ridge area. A third fire which began south and east of Woodstock along Interstate 81 in Shenandoah County burned 250 acres.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Page

When
November 15, 12:00 AM EST to November 17, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Page County, East Portion
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.620, -78.484 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

850 acres burned in Dog Slaughter Ridge area

Wildfire, Shenandoah

When
November 15, 12:00 AM EST to November 17, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Shenandoah County, North Portion
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.858, -78.571 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

250 acres burned in Ponzer Gap area

Wildfire, Greene

When
November 16, 12:00 PM EST to November 21, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Greene County, Northeast Portion
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.298, -78.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

1545 acres burned in Bootens Gap area

Wildfire, Madison

When
November 16, 12:00 PM EST to November 21, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Madison County, Southwest Portion
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.414, -78.279 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

1545 acres burned in Bootens Gap area

What these are

Wildfire
A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Virginia in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, November 1999

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5721457, 5721458, 5721455, 5721456.