Cottonwood Fire
The Cottonwood Fire burned 6,761 acres in Alaska, in 2002. It was discovered on June 29, 2002, and contained on July 29, 2002. The cause was recorded as natural.
- Size
- 6,761 acres
- Discovered
- June 29, 2002
- Contained
- July 29, 2002
- Cause
- Natural
Map
The final perimeter from the Interagency Fire Perimeter History, 5,244 acres, mapped by image interpretation. Point of origin as reported, 63.483, -154.702.
The record
- Reported final size
- 6,761 acres
- Area inside the final perimeter
- 5,244 acres
- Discovered
- June 29, 2002, 6:37 p.m. local time
- Contained
- July 29, 2002, 12:00 p.m. local time
- Cause
- Natural
- State
- Alaska
- Land ownership at origin
- Bureau of Land Management
- Reporting unit
- Alaska Fire Service
- Agency
- DVF
- Unit
- AKSWS
- Incident type
- Wildfire
- Unique fire identifier
- 2002-AKSWS-000348
- Fire occurrence record
- W-112763
- Perimeter map method
- Image Interpretation
- Note on the perimeter
- Fire perimeter modified using Landsat Image Service. Image ID: LE07_L2SP_074015_20020802_20200916_02_T1.
The three sizes are three measurements: the size the agency reported when the fire was out, the burned area MTBS drew from satellite imagery before and after, and the GIS area inside the final perimeter, unburned islands included. They rarely agree exactly.
Other large fires in Alaska in 200212
| Fire | Acres | Start | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geskakmina Lake Fire | 257,549 | Jun 8, 2002 | Natural |
| Reindeer Fire | 226,833 | Jul 17, 2002 | Natural |
| Vinasale Fire | 189,688 | May 22, 2002 | Human |
| Yetna River Fire | 152,962 | Jul 18, 2002 | Natural |
| Sischu Fire | 128,983 | Jun 5, 2002 | Natural |
| Moose Lake Fire | 117,920 | Jul 17, 2002 | Natural |
| Milepost 78 Fire | 115,328 | May 23, 2002 | Human |
| Colorado Creek Fire | 84,015 | May 26, 2002 | Natural |
| Long Creek Fire | 74,931 | Jul 21, 2002 | Natural |
| Galatea Creek Fire | 74,511 | May 22, 2002 | Natural |
| Windy Fire | 69,523 | Jul 17, 2002 | Natural |
| Spurs Fire | 64,834 | May 15, 2002 | Human |
Sources
Perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center’s Interagency Fire Perimeter History, compiled from the Forest Service, BLM, BIA, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, the Alaska Interagency Fire Center and CAL FIRE. Fire reports from Short, Karen C. 2022, Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014], 6th Edition, Forest Service Research Data Archive, doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6. Records before 2014 were joined by this site: a fire report to the burned area its MTBS identifier names, a perimeter to the burned area it lies in when the names or the sizes agree.