Ponderosa Fire (2017): burned area, damage and fire history

Key facts

Started	August 29, 2017
Contained	October 28, 2017, after 60 days
Burned	4,016 acres 46th largest fire of 2017
Cause	Arson
Buildings	56 destroyed, 0 damaged

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Where it burned

County

Butte County 4,015 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.

Buildings damaged

Destroyed Over 50% damaged 56

Buildings CAL FIRE inspected after the fire, by how badly each was damaged. Inspectors record homes, businesses and outbuildings within 100 meters of the fire, and cannot always reach every one, so the counts can differ slightly from other reports.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

1949 Unnamed fire Cause: Lightning 770 acres shared
1949 Unnamed fire 239 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 70 acres shared
1949 Unnamed fire 256 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 32 acres shared
1976 Unnamed fire 9 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 8 acres shared

Burned again

2020 North Complex 318,797 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 4,015 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Ponderosa 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