Wolf Fire

Wolf Fire
A satellite picture of the fire from directly overhead shows a round, brown cloud of smoke with a white pyrocumulus cloud bubbling in its center, surrounded by rugged mountains
The Wolf Fire's smoke plume, taken by NASA's Terra satellite on June 6, 2002
Date(s)
  • June 1 (1-06) –
  • June 14, 2002 (2002-06-14)
  • (14 days)
LocationVentura County, Southern California, United States
Coordinates34°36′32″N 119°21′54″W / 34.609°N 119.365°W / 34.609; -119.365
Statistics
Burned area21,645 acres (8,759 ha; 34 sq mi; 88 km2)
Impacts
Non-fatal injuries4
Structures destroyed6
Damage
  • $15 million
  • (equivalent to about $24 million in 2023)
Ignition
CauseFirearms
Map
A map shows the Wolf Fireas an orange shape (a thin finger along Highway 33 that broadens abruptly to the east), lying entirely within national forest lands north of Ojai
The footprint of the Wolf Fire in the Los Padres National Forest north of Ojai, California
A flame icon marks the location of the Wolf Fire in Southern California, not far from the coast
A flame icon marks the location of the Wolf Fire in Southern California, not far from the coast
The general location of the Wolf Fire in Ventura County, California

The Wolf Fire was a large wildfire in Southern California's Ventura County, north of the city of Ojai, in June 2002. The fire, was accidentally ignited by target shooting in dry grass, burned 21,645 acres (8,759 hectares) and destroyed six structures before it was completely contained on June 14. Containing the fire cost $15 million (equivalent to $24 million in 2023). No deaths or serious injuries occurred, but the fire impacted parts of the Sespe Wilderness and the Los Padres National Forest, closing roads and campgrounds while threatening Native American cultural sites and wildlife habitat. The Wolf Fire was the sixth largest fire of the 2002 California wildfire season, during which 8,171 wildfires burned more than half a million acres (200,000 ha).