These are incomplete lists of the major and minor wildfires in Washington state history, along with total costs of the fires for the years, starting in 2002. Wildfires are infrequent on the western side of the Cascade Crest, but a regular component of Eastern Washington ecology.
While the typical "fire season" in Washington varies every year based on weather conditions, most wildfires occur in between July and October. However, hotter, drier conditions can allow wildfires to start outside of these boundaries. Wildfires tend to start at these times of the year after moisture from winter and spring precipitation dries up. Vegetation and overall conditions are the hottest and driest in these periods. The increase of vegetation can make the fires spread easier.
This list only includes "major fires" that destroyed over , incurred fatalities or damaged a significant amount of property. Older fires are increasingly underreported. For example, none of the wildfires of 1926âÂÂ31 and 1943 that together destroyed more than 500,000 acres of the Colville National Forest are included.
List of minor fires, burning over and under with no loss of life or significant numbers of structures.
Wildfire seasons are defined by Washington state law as lasting from April 15 through October 15 of each year, allowing for burn bans and other restrictions to be imposed on state lands by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources during that time. According to a North American Seasonal Fire Assessment and Outlook report issued in June 2019, the summer months represent peak fire season.