Ranch Fire

Wildfire in Lake, Colusa, Glenn and Mendocino counties, July 2018

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/7847/ranch-fire-2018

Key facts

Started July 27, 2018
Contained September 19, 2018, after 54 days
Burned 410,202 acres
Largest fire of 2018 and 5th largest in California's records
Cause Miscellaneous
Buildings 240 destroyed, 27 damaged
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Lake County 282,738 acres
  2. Colusa County 73,732 acres
  3. Glenn County 38,706 acres
  4. Mendocino County 15,025 acres

Community

  1. Spring Valley 394 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 240
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 8
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 7
  4. Affected Up to 10% damaged 12

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. 1923 Streeter Ridge Fire 14,996 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 14,622 acres shared
  2. 1923 Bartlett Mtn Fire 9,915 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 7,617 acres shared
  3. 1928 Pacific Fire 15,610 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 8,317 acres shared
  4. 1932 Long Valley Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 6,910 acres shared
  5. 1933 Dan Pitney Fire 8,052 acres shared
  6. 1934 Bartlett Springs Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 3,977 acres shared
  7. 1939 Digger Pine Camp Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 3,982 acres shared
  8. 1944 Boardman Fire 19,510 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 9,302 acres shared
  9. 1947 Unnamed fire 3,867 acres in total 3,242 acres shared
  10. 1950 Little Stoney Fire 17,215 acres shared
  11. 1951 Howes Camp Fire 4,822 acres shared
  12. 1952 Unnamed fire 8,645 acres in total 8,020 acres shared
  13. 1966 Round Fire Cause: Campfire 20,862 acres shared
  14. 1973 Barkerville Fire 26,428 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 18,682 acres shared
  15. 1987 Fouts Fire Cause: Lightning 16,347 acres shared
  16. 1988 Letts Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 3,312 acres shared
  17. 1996 Fork Fire Cause: Arson 82,708 acres shared
  18. 2001 Trough Fire 24,927 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 19,450 acres shared
  19. 2003 Deafy Fire 4,782 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 4,708 acres shared
  20. 2012 Mill Fire 29,526 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 15,563 acres shared

And 93 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Ranch 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