The 2014 Washington wildfires were a series of 1,480

wildfires A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...

that burned over the course of 2014. The first occurred primarily on the east side of the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington (state), Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as m ...

in Chelan and Okanogan counties. The fires burned private land, state land, and within the Okanogan and

Wenatchee National Forest Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and most populous city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and has increased to 35,508 as of 2020. Located in the north-central part of the stat ...

s, ultimately covering over . The first fire began on July 8 near the

Entiat River The Entiat River is a tributary of the Columbia River, joining the Columbia near Entiat. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) lists two variant names for the Entiat River: ''En-ti-at-kwa River'' and ''Entiatqua River''. The river's name is ...

. On July 14 a

lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

storm started dozens more fires across the eastern

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Jay Inslee Jay Robert Inslee ( ; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician and lawyer who served from 2013 to 2025 as the 23rd governor of Washington. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012 as a ...

declared a

state of emergency A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...

, activating the

Washington National Guard The Washington National Guard is one of the four elements of the State of Washington's Washington Military Department and a component of the National Guard of the United States. It is headquartered at Camp Murray, Washington and is defined by ...

. More lightning strikes later in the summer started additional fires.

Background

While the typical "fire season" in Washington varies every year based on weather conditions, most wildfires occur in between July and October. However, hotter, drier conditions can allow wildfires to start outside of these boundaries. Wildfires tend to start at these times of the year after moisture from winter and spring precipitation dries up. Vegetation and overall conditions are the hottest and driest in these periods. The increase of vegetation can make the fires spread easier.

Mills Canyon fire

The Mills Canyon fire burned , all within Chelan County. The fire was located south of the Entiat River and west of U.S. Route 97A and the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

in the

Entiat Mountains The Entiat Mountains, or Entiat Range, is a mountain range in the U.S. state of Washington (U.S. state), Washington. Located west of the Columbia River, north of the Wenatchee River, and south of the Entiat River, the range is part of the North Ca ...

. It started on July 8 and the cause is under investigation.

July 14 lightning-strike fires

Satellite image of smoke plumes, July 18, 2014 A number of fires were started by lightning strikes on July 14.

Carlton Complex

The Carlton Complex, covering , began as four separate lightning-caused fires on July 14 in the

Methow River The Methow River ( ) is a tributary of the Columbia River in northern Washington in the United States. The river's watershed drains the eastern North Cascades, with a population of about 5,000 people. The Methow's watershed is characterized by ...

valley of Okanogan County: the Cougar Flat, French Creek, Gold Hike, and Stokes fires. These fires merged and rapidly spread southeast on July 17, burning approximately 300 homes in and around the towns of

Pateros Pateros, officially the Municipality of Pateros (; ), is the lone municipality of the Philippines, municipality of Metropolitan Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 65,227 people. This munic ...

and Malott as well as in more rural areas. The communities of

Brewster Brewster may refer to: People *Brewster (surname) *Brewster Kahle (born 1960), American computer technologist * Brewster H. Shaw (born 1945), American astronaut * Grace Brewster Hopper (born 1906), American computer scientist, mathematician, and ...

, Carlton, and Methow were also threatened by fire. Power was lost to the communities of Twisp and Winthrop. Road closures included State Route 20 east of Twisp towards

Loup Loup Pass Loup Loup Pass (el. 4020 ft./1225 m.) is a mountain pass in the Cascades in the state of Washington. It is located east of the Methow Valley of Okanogan County, between the towns of Twisp and Okanogan on State Route 20. A small ski area ...

, State Route 153 between Twisp and Pateros, and U.S. Route 97 between Pateros and Brewster. Rain slowed the fire on July 24, allowing crews to reach 60% containment by July 26. A new fire started along State Route 20 south of Winthrop on August 1. The Carlton Complex was the largest wildfire in Washington state's recorded history, surpassing the 1902

Yacolt Burn The Yacolt Burn is the collective name for dozens of fires in Washington state and Oregon occurring between September 8 and September 12, 1902, causing 38 deaths in the Lewis River area, at least nine deaths by fire in Wind River and 18 death ...

. One death, caused by a heart attack, has been blamed on the fire.

Fire fighting Firefighting is a profession aimed at controlling and extinguishing fire. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter or fireman. Firefighters typically undergo a high degree of technical training. This involves structural fir ...

efforts included nearly 3,000 personnel and numerous aircraft, including seven

UH-60 Black Hawk The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine, medium-lift military utility helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. Sikorsky submitted a design for the United States Army's Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System (UTTAS) ...

helicopters from the Washington National Guard and a

DC-10 Air Tanker The DC-10 Air Tanker is a series of 5 air tankers converted by American joint technical venture 10 Tanker Air Carrier, which have been in service as aerial firefighting aircraft since 2006. The aircraft are converted McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 ...

Chiwaukum Creek fire

Located northwest of Leavenworth in the

Chiwaukum Mountains The Chiwaukum Mountains are a north–south mountain range in central Washington, United States. They stretch from Snowgrass Mountain at , to . The mountains are made of schist, part of the Nason terrane. The original rock in the Nason terrane ...

, this fire burned . It required the closure of

U.S. Route 2 U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway System, United States Numbered Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected ...

and the evacuation of nearly 900 homes, threatening the communities of

Coles Corner Coles Corner is the name given to the corner of Fargate and Church Street in Sheffield, England, in sight of the cathedral. It was the site of the old Cole Brothers department store until it moved to Barker's Pool in 1963. The modern buildin ...

, Winton, and

Plain In geography, a plain, commonly known as flatland, is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and ...

. A

pyrocumulus cloud A flammagenitus cloud, also known as a flammagenitus, pyrocumulus cloud, or fire cloud, is a dense cumuliform cloud associated with fire or volcanic eruptions. A flammagenitus is similar dynamically in some ways to a firestorm, and the two ph ...

could be seen rising above the fire from as far away as

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

. Part of the Chiwaukum Creek Fire burned within the northeastern boundary of the

Alpine Lakes Wilderness The Alpine Lakes Wilderness is a large National Wilderness Preservation System, wilderness area spanning the Central Cascades of Washington (state), Washington state in the United States. The wilderness is located in parts of Wenatchee National ...

Duncan fire

Covering , the Duncan fire was located in the upper Entiat River drainage. It began on a ridge between the Entiat River and the North Fork Entiat River, eventually spreading east across the North Fork.

Kelly Mountain fire

Located in the Entiat Mountains near Tommy Creek, the Kelly Mountain fire burned .

Lone Mountain fire

Located in the Boulder Creek drainage northeast of Stehekin, the Lone Mountain fire burned . It was within the

Lake Chelan National Recreation Area Lake Chelan National Recreation Area is a national recreation area located about south of the Canada–US border in Chelan County, Washington. It encompasses an area of including the northern end of Lake Chelan and the surrounding area of t ...

, part of the

North Cascades National Park Complex North Cascades National Park is a national park of the United States in Washington. At more than , it is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Complex. North Cascades National Park ...

August 2 lightning-strike fires

*Devil's Elbow Complex – . This complex was made up of four fires on the

Colville Indian Reservation The Colville Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation located in Washington (state), Washington state, U.S. It is inhabited and managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, which are List of federally recognized tribes in ...

north of Keller, Washington in Ferry County. The fires required closing State Route 21. *Hansel fire – . The Hansel fire burned near Ingalls Creek and U.S. Route 97 in Chelan County. *Little Bridge Creek fire – . Located between the Twisp River and State Route 20 in Okanogan County. *Shoofly fire – in the upper drainage of the

Little Wenatchee River The Little Wenatchee River is the southern and smaller of the two rivers that flow into the west end of Lake Wenatchee. The northern and larger one is the White River. A large number of place names in the Little Wenatchee River basin, including ...

in Chelan County. *Snag Canyon fire – . Located north of

Ellensburg Ellensburg is a city in and the county seat of Kittitas County, Washington, United States. It is located just east of the Cascade Range near the junction of Interstate 90 and Interstate 82. The population was 18,666 at the 2020 census. and was ...

Kittitas County Kittitas County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. At the 2020 census, its population was 44,337. Its county seat and largest city is Ellensburg. The county was created in November 1883 when it was carved out of Yakima Cou ...

, the Snag Canyon fire burned six homes. *Upper Falls fire – . This fire burned in the Okanogan National Forest west of the

Chewuch River The Chewuch River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. Its name comes from the word ''/cwáx/'' �wáxin the Columbia-Moses language meaning "creek". The river valley was also the site of the Thirty Mile Fire which killed four fire fight ...

South Cle Elum Ridge fire

This fire was reported on August 7 on the Wenatchee National Forest southwest of

Cle Elum Cle Elum ( ) is a city in Kittitas County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,157 at the 2020 census. About by car from Seattle, Cle Elum is a popular area for camping and outdoor activities. It is also unofficially considered ...

in Kittitas County and burned .