Biscuit Fire (2002): burned area, damage and fire history

Key facts

Started	July 13, 2002
Contained	November 8, 2002, after 118 days
Burned	501,082 acres Largest fire of 2002 and 3rd largest in California's records
Cause	Lightning

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Where it burned

County

Del Norte County 28,883 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

1916 N/A Fire 10 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 9 acres shared
1928 Stone Corral Fire 5 acres in total · Cause: Smoking 4 acres shared
1940 Headwater Fire 5 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 4 acres shared
1952 Olson-Ross Fire 55 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 49 acres shared
1957 Peridotite Fire Cause: Smoking 43 acres shared
1981 Wimer Fire Cause: Campfire 3 acres shared
1991 Stoney Fire 10 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 9 acres shared

Burned again

2023 Kelly Fire 89,326 acres in total 15,107 acres shared
2023 Corral Fire 1,090 acres in total 1,076 acres shared
2023 Diamond Fire 549 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Biscuit 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