Helena Fire

Wildfire in Trinity County, August 2017

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/7720/helena-fire-2017

Key facts

Started August 30, 2017
Contained November 14, 2017, after 76 days
Burned 18,494 acres
19th largest fire of 2017
Cause Miscellaneous
Buildings 131 destroyed, 8 damaged
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Where it burned

County

  1. Trinity County 18,487 acres

Community

  1. Junction City 5,927 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

  1. Destroyed Over 50% damaged 131
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 1
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 4
  4. Affected Up to 10% damaged 3

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

  1. 1931 Unnamed fire 1,133 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 272 acres shared
  2. 1931 Unnamed fire 97 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 96 acres shared
  3. 1938 Unnamed fire 376 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 368 acres shared
  4. 1945 Unnamed fire 5,646 acres in total 1,135 acres shared
  5. 1949 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 156 acres shared
  6. 1959 Unnamed fire 2,492 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,709 acres shared
  7. 1980 Unnamed fire 1,443 acres in total · Cause: Arson 1,329 acres shared
  8. 1984 Helena Fire Cause: Power lines 12 acres shared
  9. 1987 East Fire 11,474 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 2,400 acres shared
  10. 1988 Unnamed fire 702 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 585 acres shared
  11. 1992 Brock Fire 108 acres in total · Cause: Power lines 85 acres shared
  12. 2006 Junction Fire 3,130 acres in total 11 acres shared
  13. 2008 Eagle Fire 32,024 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 4,155 acres shared
  14. 2011 Canyon Fire 31 acres in total · Cause: Power lines 13 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 2021 Monument Fire 223,108 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 3,501 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Helena 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