What Are Fire Whirls and Fire Tornadoes?
During intense wildfires, nature can take a dangerous and unpredictable turn. One of the most striking and misunderstood examples of this is the fire whirl, a swirling column of flame, ash, and wind. While they may look like fire tornadoes, the science behind them is unique. So, what exactly are fire whirls? How do they form? And are they the same as fire tornadoes?
What Are Fire Whirls?
A fire whirl, sometimes called a fire devil or fire vortex, is a spinning column of flame, smoke, ash, and hot gases. They resemble mini tornadoes and can develop during wildfires, prescribed burns, industrial fires, or even large bonfires. These fast-moving whirls can range in size from just a few feet tall to more than 1,000 feet high. Most last only a few minutes, but larger whirls can cause significant damage and spread fire unpredictably.
How Do Fire Whirls Form?
Fire whirls typically form under a specific combination of conditions:
- Intense surface heat from the fire rises rapidly.
- Variable wind directions and speeds cause horizontal and vertical shearing.
- Topography or obstacles disrupt airflow, encouraging rotation.
When a wildfire or large fire burns, it heats the air directly above it. This hot air is less dense, so it rises quickly, creating a strong updraft. If the updraft encounters a crosswind, or if the fire burns unevenly due to hills or obstacles, the air can begin to spin. It’s similar to how a figure skater speeds up by pulling in their arms. As the spinning column sucks in flames, it grows brighter and hotter, sometimes taking on a distinct, column-like appearance.
Fire whirls most commonly occur during intense wildfire events in the summer and early autumn, when temperatures are high and vegetation is dry. However, they can form anywhere that provides the right combination of intense heat, dry fuel, and wind patterns.
Though they are more likely to occur during daylight hours when the sun’s heat is strongest, challenging fire conditions can create fire whirls at any time.
Why Are Fire Whirls Dangerous?
While small fire whirls may burn out quickly, they can sometimes be extremely dangerous, even deadly. Though most are short-lived and small, larger fire whirls can:
- Move quickly across firelines or containment areas
- Hurl burning embers into new areas, creating spot fires
- Cause property damage due to wind and flames
- Can harm firefighters or civilians
Fire whirls can behave unpredictably; they can appear suddenly, shift direction without warning, burn intensely, and are often not visible until they’re dangerously close.
Are Fire Whirls the Same as Fire Tornadoes (Firenados)?
Fire whirls and fire tornadoes (sometimes called firenados) are NOT the same, though they are related and often confused.
They also differ in scale, origin, and behavior.
Fire Whirl | Fire Tornado | |
Size | Typical Size: 10–160 ft Recorded Height: ~500 ft | Typical Size: 1,000–5,000 ft Recorded Height: ~17,000 ft |
Duration | Seconds to minutes | Minutes to hours |
Formation | Surface winds + intense fire heat | Pyrocumulonimbus clouds + vorticity |
Wind Speeds | 40-100+ mph | Can exceed 143 mph (EF-3 tornado) |
Example | Common in large fires | Rare (e.g., 2018 Carr Fire) |
The 2018 Carr Fire
One of the most extreme examples of fire behavior in recent history occurred during the 2018 Carr Fire in Northern California that stunned fire experts and meteorologists.
The fire started on July 23, 2018, when a recreational trailer’s flat tire caused a rim to scrape the pavement and spark dry vegetation along Highway 299 in Whiskeytown National Recreational Area. Fueled by record-breaking heat, dry fuels, and steep terrain, the fire rapidly grew and began its destructive march toward the city of Redding, catching residents by surprise as it progressed.
On July 26, as the fire approached the Sacramento River canyon, a rare and violent fire tornado—not just a typical fire whirl—formed. This event was officially classified as an EF-3 fire tornado on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with wind speeds peaking at an estimated 143 mph, an internal temperature of 2,700 degrees, a damage path nearly three miles long, and a rotating column that reached up to 17,000 feet into the atmosphere. This event lasted just under two hours.
It even generated its own weather.
What made this event extraordinary was the combination of extreme heat, chaotic wind patterns, and topographic funneling in the river canyon, creating a massive pyrocumulonimbus cloud (or pyroCb) a thunderstorm-like cloud formed from extreme heat and rising smoke, allowing a fire whirl to evolve into a tornadic-scale vortex, reaching the width of 1,000 feet, or three football fields.
Unlike smaller fire whirls, the Carr Fire tornado developed a strong central updraft due to the pyroCb supercharging the local wind environment, pulling in surrounding embers and debris. It began rotating with the intensity of a tornado. It uprooted trees, sheared steel transmission towers, and obliterated neighborhoods.
The tornado destroyed over 1,500 structures and tragically claimed the lives of eight people, including three firefighters, a PG&E lineman, and four civilians - the youngest being 4 and 5 years old.
The Carr Fire was contained entirely on August 30, 2018. It burned over 229,000 acres, serving as a wake-up call for the fire and emergency management community, illustrating how a wildfire can evolve into a self-sustaining weather event when intense heat, topography, and atmospheric conditions combine.
What Should You Do If You Encounter a Fire Whirl?
If you’re in the wildland fire environment and spot a fire whirl:
- Move away quickly; fire whirls can shift direction without warning.
- Avoid being uphill or downwind from the whirl.
- Watch for spot fires; they can light far from the main fireline.
- Alert your team immediately.
For communities near wildfire zones, it’s another reason to:
- Maintain defensible space
- Stay up to date on fire conditions
- Evacuate when directed
About True North Gear
True North has invested over 30 years into researching, designing, and manufacturing innovative gear and clothing for first responders and industrial safety workers. We provide the pinnacle in performance through a design philosophy that embraces durability, comfort, and protection as inclusive elements.
Designing and delivering dependable products is essential to our overarching mission to support and protect customers operating in life-risking environments every day. As part of these efforts, we focus on actions that improve and support the great outdoors.
Through our partnership with 1% for the Planet, we’re putting our resources and attention on helping the environment that our customers live and work in because a safer landscape means fewer lives on the line, along with healthier land, environment, and air.
