Miller Fire

198835,729 acresCalifornia

The Miller Fire burned 35,729 acres, about 56 square miles, across 3 counties. It began on September 17, 1988.

Watch how it happened

Miller Fire · 1988

How it happened

See how severely each place burned, revealed outward from where it started.

About this replay
IgnitionSeptember 17, 1988Historical replay — order not recorded
Final area35,729 ac
Revealed—
Counties3

How severely it burned

Burn severity inside the final perimeter, classified from Landsat images taken before and after the fire.

Map of burn severity across the Miller Fire
Burn severity by class
SeverityShareAcres
Highmost vegetation consumed, soils altered5.8%2,075
Moderatemixed: many trees killed, some survive26%9,283
Lowsurface fire, most trees survive25%8,896
Unburned to lowislands inside the perimeter, little change39%13,995
Increased greennessvegetation greener after the fire than before4.1%1,481

6% of the area inside the perimeter burned at high severity, about 2,075 acres; 32% burned at moderate or high severity.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (U.S. Geological Survey and USDA Forest Service). Classes come from the change in a Landsat burn index (dNBR) between images before and after the fire; acres are each class’s share of the fire’s mapped area.

Where it burned

Acres inside each county, measured from the satellite-mapped perimeter.

Acres burned by county
Solano CountyCA22,772
Napa CountyCA12,971
Yolo CountyCA6

Other large fires in California in 1988

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service). Type recorded: Wildfire.