Caldor Fire

Wildfire in El Dorado County, August 2021

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/8265/caldor-fire-2021

Key facts

Started August 14, 2021
Contained November 18, 2021, after 96 days
Burned 221,786 acres
3rd largest fire of 2021 and 17th largest in California's records
Cause Not recorded
Buildings 1,005 destroyed, 81 damaged
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. El Dorado County 219,702 acres
  2. Amador County 1,171 acres
  3. Alpine County 861 acres

Communities

  1. Grizzly Flats 3,460 acres
  2. Kirkwood 286 acres
  3. Meyers 44 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 1,005
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 7
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 18
  4. Affected Up to 10% 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

  1. 1916 Unnamed fire 1,397 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,303 acres shared
  2. 1916 Unnamed fire 773 acres shared
  3. 1919 Unnamed fire 603 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 537 acres shared
  4. 1919 Unnamed fire 505 acres shared
  5. 1924 Upper Desolation Val Fire 10,973 acres in total 5,142 acres shared
  6. 1926 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 550 acres shared
  7. 1926 Unnamed fire 434 acres shared
  8. 1932 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 7,481 acres shared
  9. 1932 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 327 acres shared
  10. 1936 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 777 acres shared
  11. 1957 Snowline Fire 1,021 acres in total 843 acres shared
  12. 1973 Pilliken Fire Cause: Arson 10,313 acres shared
  13. 1973 Park Creek Fire Cause: Arson 715 acres shared
  14. 1981 Wrights Fire 3,843 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 3,684 acres shared
  15. 1988 Bear Fire Cause: Debris burning 582 acres shared
  16. 1992 Cleveland Fire 22,519 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 3,113 acres shared
  17. 2002 Plum Fire Cause: Debris burning 1,761 acres shared
  18. 2004 Freds Fire 7,558 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 1,337 acres shared
  19. 2011 Long Fire Cause: Lightning 483 acres shared
  20. 2019 Caples Fire 3,442 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 437 acres shared

And 60 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Caldor 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