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March 16, 2026 - Record-setting Fires in Nebraska
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Extreme drought combined with whipping winds set the scene for a vicious wildfire outbreak in Nebraska in mid-March 2026.
On March 13, the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), received 24 reports of wildfires in the state in the prior 24 hours. Four of those fires were considered major fires and were growing. These were the Road 203 fire, burning south of the communities of Halsey and Dunning within the Nebraska National forest; the Lincoln County Fire (Cottonwood Fire), located south of I-80, near Brady and Gothenburg; the Morrill County Fire north of Nebraska Highway 92, sited between Crescent Lake Wildlife Refuge and Lake McConaughy; and the Anderson Bridge Fire west of Valentine. Wind gusts of up to 65 miles per hour (105 km/h) and tinder-dry fuels pushed the major fires to spread rapidly, despite aggressive firefighting response.
The Nebraska governor has issued an emergency proclamation for Morrill, Garden, Arthur, Keith, Lincoln, Dawson, and Frontier counties and a statewide burn ban. The burn ban extends from March 13 to March 27.
On March 13, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of two of the wildfires, the Morrill Fire (northwest) and the Cottonwood Fire (southeast). Red “hot spots” mark areas where the thermal bands on the MODIS instrument detected actively burning fire.
By March 16, the Morrill Fire had burnt 572,904 acres in size, according to InciWeb Incident Information System. It was burning in dormant brush and hardwood slash and, at one point, made a rapid southeast run of 65 miles in only 6 hours. On March 16, fire behavior continued to be listed as “extreme” with wind-driven runs. The fire remained zero percent contained with 112 personnel working the scene. The Morrill Fire has become the largest fire in Nebraska history and has taken one life.
The Cottonwood Fire expanded to 112,144 acres by the early morning of March 16, according to InciWeb. It is burning in short grass and tall grass prairie, with mixed dry shrubs and hardwood, including red cedar, in some areas. The fire behavior is described as very active, with wind driven runs and wide flame fronts. With 119 personnel working the fire, the Cottonwood Fire remains zero percent contained.
The Cottonwood Fire and Morrill Fire have been combined for management purposes and are now being managed by the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team. Both fires are moving in numerous directions due to strong, gusting, and variable winds. According to InciWeb, both fires pose a threat to communities and railroad infrastructure.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/13/2026
Resolutions:
1km (393.7 KB), 500m (852.5 KB), 250m (1.1 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Extreme drought combined with whipping winds set the scene for a vicious wildfire outbreak in Nebraska in mid-March 2026.
On March 13, the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), received 24 reports of wildfires in the state in the prior 24 hours. Four of those fires were considered major fires and were growing. These were the Road 203 fire, burning south of the communities of Halsey and Dunning within the Nebraska National forest; the Lincoln County Fire (Cottonwood Fire), located south of I-80, near Brady and Gothenburg; the Morrill County Fire north of Nebraska Highway 92, sited between Crescent Lake Wildlife Refuge and Lake McConaughy; and the Anderson Bridge Fire west of Valentine. Wind gusts of up to 65 miles per hour (105 km/h) and tinder-dry fuels pushed the major fires to spread rapidly, despite aggressive firefighting response. The Nebraska governor has issued an emergency proclamation for Morrill, Garden, Arthur, Keith, Lincoln, Dawson, and Frontier counties and a statewide burn ban. The burn ban extends from March 13 to March 27.
On March 13, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of two of the wildfires, the Morrill Fire (northwest) and the Cottonwood Fire (southeast). Red “hot spots” mark areas where the thermal bands on the MODIS instrument detected actively burning fire.
By March 16, the Morrill Fire had burnt 572,904 acres in size, according to InciWeb Incident Information System. It was burning in dormant brush and hardwood slash and, at one point, made a rapid southeast run of 65 miles in only 6 hours. On March 16, fire behavior continued to be listed as “extreme” with wind-driven runs. The fire remained zero percent contained with 112 personnel working the scene. The Morrill Fire has become the largest fire in Nebraska history and has taken one life.
The Cottonwood Fire expanded to 112,144 acres by the early morning of March 16, according to InciWeb. It is burning in short grass and tall grass prairie, with mixed dry shrubs and hardwood, including red cedar, in some areas. The fire behavior is described as very active, with wind driven runs and wide flame fronts. With 119 personnel working the fire, the Cottonwood Fire remains zero percent contained.
The Cottonwood Fire and Morrill Fire have been combined for management purposes and are now being managed by the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team. Both fires are moving in numerous directions due to strong, gusting, and variable winds. According to InciWeb, both fires pose a threat to communities and railroad infrastructure.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/13/2026
Resolutions:
1km (393.7 KB), 500m (852.5 KB), 250m (1.1 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
