B 484 Fire

199744,810 acresAlaska

The B 484 Fire burned 44,810 acres, about 70 square miles, across Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area. It began on July 3, 1997.

Watch how it happened

B 484 Fire · 1997

How it happened

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

About this replay
IgnitionJuly 3, 1997Historical replay — order not recorded
Final area44,810 ac
Revealed—
Counties1

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 B 484 Fire
Burn severity by class
SeverityShareAcres
Highmost vegetation consumed, soils altered14%6,307
Moderatemixed: many trees killed, some survive47%21,080
Lowsurface fire, most trees survive25%11,214
Unburned to lowislands inside the perimeter, little change12%5,254
Increased greennessvegetation greener after the fire than before0.1%42
Not mappedcloud, shadow or water in the satellite images2.0%913

14% of the area inside the perimeter burned at high severity, about 6,307 acres; 61% 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
Yukon-Koyukuk Census AreaAK44,843

Other large fires in Alaska in 1997

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