California Fire Map: CAL FIRE, InciWeb and Smoke Tracking
Last updated 2026-09-19
California has the country's most-used fire information system, and the state's own CAL FIRE incident map at fire.ca.gov/incidents is the anchor: active incidents, sizes, containment and official updates from the state's fire agency. This guide covers the full set — CAL FIRE, the federal systems, and the smoke map — with special attention to Southern California communities like Simi Valley that sit in the wildland-urban interface. For smoke in the LA basin, see live Los Angeles air quality.
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The core maps for California fires
CAL FIRE incidents (fire.ca.gov/incidents) — the authoritative state map. Each incident page carries official details: size, containment, evacuation orders from the responsible sheriff, and the incident-management-team updates that appear once a fire draws a state or federal team.
InciWeb (inciweb.nifc.gov) — the federal interagency system covering the large incidents on Forest Service, BLM and Park Service land, which includes much of the Sierra and the state's northern timber country.
County and city sources — in California, evacuation orders are issued by county sheriffs, and each affected county runs its own alert system (in Southern California, most residents should already be enrolled in their county's Alert program: WarnCentralCal, ReadySBC, NotifyLA and their counterparts). The Watch Duty nonprofit app, staffed by trained volunteers including retired firefighters, is the most popular vetted overlay for alerts and evacuation zones.
The AirNow Fire and Smoke Map (fire.airnow.gov) — the EPA/USFS joint map of fire detections, plumes and hourly AQI. In a state where dozens of fires can burn simultaneously, the smoke map is what tells you which one matters for your lungs.
Simi Valley and the Southern California interface
Simi Valley sits in a classic wildland-urban interface: a valley community ringed by open hillsides, brushy chaparral and the Santa Susana Mountains, where the Santa Ana winds of autumn can push a brush fire from ignition to the edge of neighborhoods in hours. Recent area history — the Woolsey Fire (2018) and the Sandy Fire (2026) in the same brush country — is the template: fast-moving interface fires where the first hours matter most.
For Simi Valley residents the hierarchy during an incident is: VC Alert (Ventura County's official notification system) and the Ventura County Sheriff for evacuation orders; the CAL FIRE incident page for the fire itself; Watch Duty for speed; and the AirNow map plus our LA air-quality page for the smoke that fills the valley even when the fire stays in the hills.
Reading a CAL FIRE incident page
Each incident page leads with the numbers that matter — acres burned and containment percentage — but the two most consequential fields are the evacuation status and the incident-update timestamp. Containment means progress on the control line, not that the fire is out; a 40%-contained fire on a red-flag wind day remains dangerous. Updates carry the date and time of the last official briefing — during fast-moving interface fires, CAL FIRE refreshes these pages at least daily, and the Watch Duty app often surfaces the same briefings minutes faster.
When the smoke arrives
Southern California smoke is dominated by fine PM2.5 from brush and chaparral. At Moderate AQI, sensitive groups ease off; from USG, close windows and run filtration; at Unhealthy, everyone limits outdoor exertion and a properly-fitted N95 is the right call for necessary outdoor time. Our guides on keeping smoke out of the house, the Corsi-Rosenthal box and creating a clean room cover the indoor side; MERV-13 filters are the consumable to stock before fall.
FAQ
What is the official California fire map?
The CAL FIRE incident map at fire.ca.gov/incidents — the state fire agency's authoritative listing of active incidents with size, containment, evacuation status and official updates. For fires on federal land, InciWeb (inciweb.nifc.gov) carries the incident pages; for smoke, fire.airnow.gov.
Where do Simi Valley residents get evacuation orders?
Official evacuation orders come from the Ventura County Sheriff via VC Alert, the county's notification system — enroll before fire season. CAL FIRE's incident page carries the evacuation status, and the Watch Duty app provides vetted, fast updates on evacuation zones.
What does containment percentage actually mean?
Containment is the share of the fire's perimeter held by a control line that has stopped its spread — not how much of the fire is out. A 40%-contained fire can still run on the uncontained side when wind arrives. Pair containment with the evacuation status and the wind forecast, not on its own.
Why is the smoke bad in my valley when the fire is in the hills?
Smoke plumes rise over the hills and settle where topography and the marine layer trap them — often the valleys, not the fire's location. The AirNow Fire and Smoke Map shows the plume and hourly AQI for your exact location, which is the reading that should drive your plans.
Check the air where you are
Live AQI on the 2024 EPA standard, with the reporting monitor and observation time on every reading.
Where this guidance comes from
We paraphrase published guidance rather than inventing our own. The primary sources for everything on this page:
- AirNow — Air Quality and Health (U.S. EPA): the AQI scale and its activity guidance by level.
- EPA — Particulate Matter (PM) Basics: what PM2.5 is and why it reaches deep into the lungs.
- CDC — Wildfire Smoke Safety: who is at higher risk, and when to seek care.
- EPA — Wildfires and Indoor Air Quality: clean rooms, filtration and what actually works indoors.
- AHAM: the CADR standard and the two-thirds room-sizing rule.
Our own AQI arithmetic is documented on the methodology page.
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Some links are affiliate links — see disclosure. This guide is general health information and is not a substitute for medical advice — see disclaimer.