What does it mean that a fire is “X% contained”? How is this number determined?
– Jordan
Hi Jordan and thanks for your question. Many other people have asked us the same thing!
We have heard the word “contained” a lot over the last few days.
A contained fire doesn’t mean the flames have been extinguished or that the fire is under control.
Instead, it refers to how much of a control line has been set up around an active fire’s perimeter.
Basically, a fire needs to be entirely surrounded by a control line for the blaze to be considered 100 per cent contained.
According to the Western Fire Chiefs Association, authorities will only declare an area of a fire as “contained” if they are confident “the fire will not surpass the control”.
But, fires can also be impacted by external factors such as wind — meaning containment is not always a guarantee.
Currently this is where the fires are at:
- Palisades fire is 13pc contained
- Eaton fire is 27pc contained
- Hurst fire is 89pc contained
