PlainHazard

Pennsylvania wildfires

Every recorded wildfire record since 1996 · 17 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 85 wildfire records in Pennsylvania from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 4.5 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the April 6, 2015 wildfire in Northampton County: 1 death, 3 injuries and $2,490 in damage in 2025 dollars across 2 records. Pennsylvania ranks 21st of 48 states and territories by count and 17th of 48 per square mile.

Wildfires in Pennsylvania, 1996 to 2026

Wildfire records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $1 million
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
851996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
4.5average
Deaths
113 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$5.8Mas filed
Busiest year
200213 records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Are wildfire records common in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania averages about 4.5 wildfire records a year since 2000, 21st of 48 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2002 (13). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Pennsylvania records 19 wildfire records since 1996, 17th of 48 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. Hawaii 441
  2. 2. New Jersey 241
  3. 3. Puerto Rico 137
  4. 4. California 102
  5. 5. Florida 91
  6. 6. Oklahoma 88
  7. 7. Delaware 87
  8. 8. Washington 82
  9. 9. Oregon 77
  10. 10. Colorado 64
  11. 17. Pennsylvania 19

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in Pennsylvania have the most wildfire records?

Per square mile, Northampton County leads Pennsylvania: 18 days with a wildfire record since 1996, 48.7 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Northampton County has the most wildfire records (19 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Northampton County 48.7 (19)
  2. Carbon County 39.3 (15)
  3. Lehigh County 20.3 (7)
  4. Monroe County 18.1 (11)
  5. Delaware County 16.3 (3)
  6. Berks County 11.7 (10)
  7. Philadelphia County 7.4 (1)
  8. Bucks County 6.6 (4)
  9. Montgomery County 6.2 (3)
  10. Cumberland County 3.7 (2)
  11. Chester County 2.7 (3)
  12. Blair County 1.9 (1)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is fire season in Pennsylvania?

64% of its wildfire records since 1996 fell in March and April. The busiest month is April (41 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 0 · Feb 0 · Mar 13 · Apr 41 · May 4 · Jun 0 · Jul 12 · Aug 2 · Sep 0 · Oct 2 · Nov 10 · Dec 1 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

What were the deadliest wildfire records in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2015-04-06 WildfireNorthampton County · forecast zone Northampton One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. The combination of gusty south to southwest winds and drying conditions led to several wildfires across Eastern Pennsylvania on the 6th and resulted in one fatality, a couple of injuries and minor property damage. In Northampton County, on the afternoon of the 6th, in Lower Saucon Township, a 72-year-old man died ... 1 3 $2K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest wildfire records in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2024-11-08 WildfireBlair County · forecast zone Blair 0 3 $1.9M
2007-04-23 WildfireNorthampton County · forecast zone Northampton 0 0 $1.7M
2025-04-23 WildfireCumberland County · forecast zone Cumberland 0 0 $1.1M
2025-05-01 WildfireCumberland County · forecast zone Cumberland 0 0 $800K
2015-04-06 WildfireNorthampton County · forecast zone Northampton One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. 1 3 $2K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are wildfire records becoming more frequent in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

Wildfires: Pennsylvania and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadePennsylvaniaUnited StatesPennsylvania's share
1996-9905100
2000s562,9971.9%
2010s203,6500.5%
2020-2692,4360.4%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent wildfire records in Pennsylvania

The 10 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2025-05-01 WildfireCumberland County · forecast zone Cumberland 0 0 $800K
2025-04-23 WildfireCumberland County · forecast zone Cumberland 0 0 $1.1M
2024-11-08 WildfireBlair County · forecast zone Blair 0 3 $1.9M
2023-04-12 WildfireElk County · forecast zone Elk 0 1 –
2015-04-12 WildfireChester County · forecast zone Western Chester 0 1 –
2015-04-06 WildfireMontgomery County · forecast zone Western Montgomery 0 3 $1K
2015-04-06 WildfireNorthampton County · forecast zone Northampton 1 0 $1K
2012-04-09 WildfireBerks County · forecast zone Berks 0 3 –
2010-07-06 WildfireMonroe County · forecast zone Monroe 0 2 –
2007-04-23 WildfireNorthampton County · forecast zone Northampton 0 0 $1.7M

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

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