Gorda-Rat Fire

Wildfire in Monterey County, July 1985

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/3937/gorda-rat-fire-1985

Key facts

Started July 6, 1985
Contained July 6, 1985, after 0 days
Burned 56,158 acres
3rd largest fire of 1985
Cause Lightning
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Where it burned

County

  1. Monterey County 56,157 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1911 Unnamed fire 3,374 acres in total 2,838 acres shared
  2. 1916 Unnamed fire 1,394 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 861 acres shared
  3. 1916 Unnamed fire 1,876 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 760 acres shared
  4. 1917 Unnamed fire 3,095 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 2,845 acres shared
  5. 1917 Unnamed fire 1,088 acres in total 1,056 acres shared
  6. 1928 Unnamed fire 1,583 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 861 acres shared
  7. 1929 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 1,022 acres shared
  8. 1933 Unnamed fire 7,901 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 5,083 acres shared
  9. 1933 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 944 acres shared
  10. 1935 Unnamed fire 1,327 acres shared
  11. 1939 Unnamed fire 1,692 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,465 acres shared
  12. 1941 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 6,372 acres shared
  13. 1976 Indians Fire 9,909 acres in total · Cause: Smoking 3,285 acres shared
  14. 1977 Marble-Cone Fire 173,333 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 6,957 acres shared
  15. 1981 Gamboa #1 Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 3,694 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 1999 Kirk Fire 85,835 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 33,792 acres shared
  2. 2008 Indians Fire 76,460 acres in total · Cause: Campfire 2,764 acres shared
  3. 2008 Gallery Fire 163,607 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 12,401 acres shared
  4. 2008 Chalk Fire 16,266 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 8,119 acres shared
  5. 2020 Dolan Fire 124,527 acres in total 52,621 acres shared

And 9 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Gorda-Rat Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data