Dragon Bravo Fire

Dragon Bravo Fire
Part of the 2025 Arizona wildfires
The Dragon Bravo Fire seen from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on July 30
Date(s)July 4, 2025 (2025-07-04) – Present
LocationGrand Canyon North Rim
Coordinates36°23′20.4″N 112°2′54.4″W / 36.389000°N 112.048444°W / 36.389000; -112.048444
Statistics
Perimeter62% contained
Burned area145,489 acres (58,877 ha)
Impacts
Structures destroyed113 including Grand Canyon Lodge[1]
Ignition
CauseLightning
Map
Dragon Bravo Fire is located in Arizona
Dragon Bravo Fire
Location in northern Arizona

The Dragon Bravo Fire is a massive wildfire burning at the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. The Wildfire was started by lightning and initially reported July 4, 2025. As of August 19, the fire had so far burned 145,489 acres (58,877 ha) and is 62% contained.[1][2][3][4][5]

The fire has destroyed 113 structures, including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge.[1][6]

It is the 7th largest wildfire in Arizona history and is the largest wildfire in the United States during the 2025 wildfire season.[7][8][9]

Events

Dragon Bravo Fire Activity Map for August 19, 2025
The Grand Canyon Lodge on July 18, 2025 after being destroyed by the Dragon Bravo Fire
North Rim Lodge remains on July 18, 2025 after burning in the Dragon Bravo Fire on the night of July 12-13, 2025
Dragon Bravo Fire Pyrocumulus July 28, 2025
The view southeast from Point Imperial. Pinion, juniper, and ponderosa pine trees on the north slopes of the inner Grand Canyon burn on August 12, 2025
Dragon Bravo Fire in Grand Canyon August 15, 2025

July

The Dragon Bravo Fire was first reported on July 4, 2025, at around 5:05 pm MST.[2] Firefighters initially chose a confine and contain strategy and allowed the fire to burn. On July 11 the fire greatly expanded. North Rim residents were ordered to evacuate and late that night the fire burned into the North Rim Developed area, destroying the water treatment plant.[10][11] In the early hours of July 13, the historic Grand Canyon Lodge inside the park at the North Rim was destroyed due to the fire. Dozens of other structures in the North Rim Developed area were also destroyed.[1][6] Firefighters had managed to make progress using aerial fire retardant drops near the lodge but had to pull back due to a chlorine gas leak at the nearby water treatment plant.[10][12] Other historic buildings in the area, including the Visitors Center and historic cabins associated with the Grand Canyon Inn and Campground, as well as the Grand Canyon North Rim Headquarters were destroyed.[10]

By the close of July 27, the fire had burned 50,323 acres (20,365 ha). On July 28, the fire significantly increased in size and at the close of July 30, had more than doubled in size to 105,415 acres (42,660 ha) of land, becoming a megafire.[3][13] This three day advance burned through upper North Canyon, a refuge for Arizona's native fish Apache trout,[14] and at one point threatened the Kaibab Lodge.[15][16][17]

August

On August 1, 2025 a localized Red flag warning was issued for the fires immediate area.[18]

By August 6, 2025, besides the “developed area” including the historic North Rim Lodge, the following trails and areas had been burned: North Kaibab Trail down to Supai Tunnel; Both sides of Arizona State Route 67 (SR 67) from the Lodge to the park entrance gate; Both sides of the Cape Royal Road from SR 67 north to Point Imperial, and south to Roosevelt Point; Transept Trail (entirety); Widforss Trail (entirety); Tiyo Point Trail (entirety); Point Sublime Road on both sides from SR 67 to the Kanabowits Road, excluding The Basin meadow; the Ken Patrick Trail (entirety); Uncle Jim Loop Trail (entirety); Obi Point Trail; Old Bright Angel Trail; The Arizona Trail from the North Kaibab Trail trailhead to the north through the Park and beyond East Rim Viewpoint; A majority of the Kaibab National Forest east of SR 67 to the east end of the plateau including Upper North Canyon Trail (entirety); Upper South Canyon Trail (entirety); Upper Saddle Mountain trailhead, and some of the Saddle Mountain Trail; The East Rim Viewpoint and the Marble Viewpoint.

Another Red flag warning day occurred August 8, 2025, and the fire expanded 7,097 acres to the northeast, southwest, and southeast. The southeast expansion burned three miles to the east off the Walhalla Plateau down into the Grand Canyon proper.

By August 12, 2025, the fire burned to within a mile of the Colorado River.[19]

On August 18, 2025, the fire passed the 145,000 acre mark or 227 square miles, an area equal to the size of Chicago, Illinois.

Cause

The cause of the fire is believed to be due to lightning.[2][20] Initially the fire was managed under a confine and contain strategy, which is intended to allow for the natural role of fire on the landscape while minimizing the risk to infrastructure and park values. Near record high temperatures, no precipitation, low fuel moistures and windy conditions all caused the fire to grow significantly in size.[8][21]

Growth and containment table

Fire containment status Gray: contained; Red: active; %: percent contained;
Date Area burned Personnel Containment Cost
Jul 4[22] 0.25 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA
Jul 5[22] NA NA 0% NA
Jul 6[22] 2.75 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA
Jul 7[22] 22.4 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA
Jul 8[22] 22.4 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA
Jul 9[22] 59 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA


Jul 10[22] 120 acres (0 km2) NA 0% NA
Jul 11[22] 1,500 acres (6 km2) NA
0%
 NA
Jul 12[22] 5,000 acres (20 km2) NA
0%
 NA
Jul 13[22] 5,717 acres (23 km2) 295
0%
 NA
Jul 14[23][22] 8,570 acres (35 km2) 295
0%
 750K
Jul 15[24][22] 9,289 acres (38 km2) 366
0%
 2.2M
Jul 16[25][22] 11,012 acres (45 km2) 594
0%
 3.6M
Jul 17[26][22] 11,742 acres (48 km2) 594
0%
 5.1M
Jul 18[27][22] 11,742 acres (48 km2) 662
0%
 6.2M
Jul 19[28][22] 12,645 acres (51 km2) 662
2%
 6.2M
Jul 20[29][22] 12,728 acres (52 km2) 848
8%
 9.6M
Jul 21[30][22] 13,662 acres (55 km2) 867
18%
 12.3M
Jul 22[31][22] 16,765 acres (68 km2) 962
26%
 13.8M
Jul 23[32][22] 23,082 acres (93 km2) 998
26%
 15.7M
Jul 24[33][22] 28,773 acres (116 km2) 998
28%
 17.8M
Jul 25[34][22] 35,456 acres (143 km2) 1,038
26%
 20.7M
Jul 26[35][22] 44,429 acres (180 km2) 1,027
26%
 21.8M
Jul 27[36][22] 50,393 acres (204 km2) 1,048
26%
 23.8M
Jul 28[37][22] 71,005 acres (287 km2) 959
13%
 25.1M
Jul 29[38][22] 94,228 acres (381 km2) 959
9%
 25.1M
Jul 30[39][22] 105,415 acres (427 km2) 1,066
4%
 27.4M
Jul 31[40][22] 111,907 acres (453 km2) 1,194
9%
 29.4M
Aug 1[41][22] 114,538 acres (464 km2) 1,189
8%
 31.7M
Aug 2[42][22] 116,592 acres (472 km2) 1,189
11%
 34.4M
Aug 3[43][22] 123,171 acres (498 km2) 1,214
12%
 34.4M
Aug 4[44][22] 126,445 acres (512 km2) 1,202
12%
 34.4M
Aug 5[45][22] 130,520 acres (528 km2) 1,343
13%
 43.0M
Aug 6[46][22] 132,309 acres (535 km2) 1,343
13%
 45.3M
Aug 7[47][22] 134,050 acres (542 km2) 1,343
29%
 47.9M
Aug 8[48][22] 141,147 acres (571 km2) 1,335
36%
 50.7M
Aug 9[49][22] 143,489 acres (581 km2) 1,335
37%
 52.5M
Aug 10[50][22] 143,808 acres (582 km2) 1,326
48%
 54.9M
Aug 11[51][22] 143,974 acres (583 km2) 1,252
44%
 57.7M
Aug 12[52][22] 144,432 acres (584 km2) 1,327
44%
 60.2M
Aug 13[53][22] 144,984 acres (587 km2) 1,125
44%
 63.6M
Aug 14[54][22] 144,984 acres (587 km2) 978
54%
 66.1M
Aug 15[55][22] 144,984 acres (587 km2) 845
61%
 77.5M
Aug 16[56][22] 144,984 acres (587 km2) 845
61%
 80.5M
Aug 17[57][22] 144,984 acres (587 km2) 774
61%
 80.5M
Aug 18[58][22] 144,991 acres (587 km2) 742
61%
 83.8M
Aug 19[59][22] 145,489 acres (589 km2) 698
61%
 86.6M

Impact

Closures and evacuations

On July 11, 2025, mandatory evacuation orders were issued for all North Rim residents. On July 13, 2025, the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park was closed for the remainder of the 2025 season. [2][60][61][62] Arizona State Route 67 was closed due to the fire.[63][64] The entire North Kaibab Forest was closed on July 23, 2025. Portions of the Forest were reopened August 19, 2025.[65]

Criticism of response

The Arizona delegation including Governor Katie Hobbs, Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, and Congressman Paul Gosar called for an investigation into the National Park Service handling of the fire. They criticized the federal government for initially managing the fire as a controlled burn.[10][66]

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b c d "Dragon Bravo Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.wildfire.gov. July 13, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  3. ^ a b Breslin, Sean (July 31, 2025). "Grand Canyon Fire Becomes 'Megafire' | Weather.com". weather.com. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  4. ^ "National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) National Situation Report" (PDF). National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). August 10, 2025. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  5. ^ "National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) National Situation Report" (PDF). National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). August 10, 2025. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  6. ^ a b Gonzalez, Janelle (July 14, 2025). Wildfire destroys historic Grand Canyon Lodge | CNN. Retrieved July 14, 2025 – via www.cnn.com.
  7. ^ Stone, Kevin (July 30, 2025). "Dragon Bravo Fire becomes Arizona's 10 largest wildfire". KTAR.com. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
  8. ^ a b "Dragon Bravo Fire explodes in size to become 10th-largest in Arizona history". 12news.com. July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  9. ^ Cruz, Michelle. "Blaze at the Grand Canyon is the largest US wildfire in 2025". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved August 5, 2025.
  10. ^ a b c d "A wildfire that destroyed historic Grand Canyon Lodge spread after being allowed to burn for days". AP News. July 14, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025.
  11. ^ "Dragon Bravo Fire Update-8:45 p.m., July 11, 2025". Facebook Grand Canyon National Park's Post. July 11, 2025. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  12. ^ "Dragon Bravo Fire Preliminary Structure Loss Report for July 15, 2025 07-14-2025". inciweb.wildfire.gov. July 14, 2025. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  13. ^ Dragon Bravo Fire explodes to over 105K acres. July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025 – via www.azfamily.com.
  14. ^ "Dragon Bravo Fire Activity Map For July 31, 2025". July 31, 2025. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  15. ^ Ragas, Lindsey (July 29, 2025). "'Just say a prayer': Dragon Bravo Fire nears Kaibab Lodge". FOX 10 Phoenix. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
  16. ^ Caltabiano, David (July 29, 2025). "Dragon Bravo Fire threatens Kaibab Lodge near Grand Canyon". KOLD. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
  17. ^ Covarrubias Jr, Rey (August 9, 2025). "Dragon Bravo Fire burns through over 140,000 acres at North Rim of Grand Canyon". azcentral. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
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  66. ^ "Gosar Seeks Answers to Devastating Dragon Bravo Wildfire at the Grand Canyon". gosar.house.gov. July 15, 2025. Retrieved August 12, 2025.
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