Minnesota · Active · 4,815 acres
Little Knife Fire, Minnesota
4,815
Acres reported
90%
Contained
0
Acres since yesterday
Last updated · refreshed every 15 minutes from the NIFC WFIGS feed · awareness only — follow local authorities
Update ·
As of Aug 18, 2026, 09:15 UTC, the Little Knife Fire is listed as active at 4,815 acres, 90% contained, in Lake County, Minnesota.
No change in reported size or containment since Aug 17, 2026, 09:00 UTC.
The most recent mapped perimeter (Aug 9, 2026, 13:49 UTC) covers 4,419 acres; the mapped perimeter has been updated 7 times since the fire began.
No satellite heat detections matched to this incident in the last 24 hours (last one Jul 17, 2026, 08:03 UTC).
Little Knife Fire map
The most recent mapped perimeter (solid) and the previous day's perimeter (dashed), with the reported point of origin.
Latest perimeter Previous perimeter · Perimeters come from the WFIGS interagency perimeter service and are usually mapped once a day; the mapped area can differ from the reported acreage.
Key facts
- Size
- 4,815 acres
- Containment
- 90%
- Status
- Active
- Discovered
- Jul 15, 2026
- Location
- Lake County, Minnesota
- Origin point
- 48.1611, -91.1048
- Peak reported size
- 6,000 acres
- Perimeter mapped
- Aug 9, 2026 (9 days ago)
- Satellite heat, 24 h
- none matched
Nearest towns
Distances are from the reported point of origin, not from the fire’s edge (see the perimeter map for the current extent).
- Ely, MN
- Grand Marais, MN
- Babbitt, MN
Other fires nearby
- Camp Fire
- Bear Trap Fire
- Dark Fire
Little Knife Fire daily history
The largest size and containment reported each UTC day, from our 15-minute archive of the federal feed (first seen Jul 15, 2026, 15:00 UTC).
| Day (UTC) | Reported size | Change | Contained |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 18, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | 90% |
| Aug 17, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | 90% |
| Aug 16, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 15, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 14, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 13, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 12, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 11, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 10, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 9, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 8, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 7, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 6, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 5, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 4, 2026 | 4,815 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 3, 2026 | 4,815 acres | −143 | — |
| Aug 2, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Aug 1, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 31, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 30, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 29, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 28, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 27, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 26, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 25, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 24, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 23, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 22, 2026 | 4,958 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 21, 2026 | 4,958 acres | −1,042 | — |
| Jul 20, 2026 | 6,000 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 19, 2026 | 6,000 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 18, 2026 | 6,000 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 17, 2026 | 6,000 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 16, 2026 | 6,000 acres | 0 | — |
| Jul 15, 2026 | 6,000 acres | — | — |
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Little Knife Fire questions, answered from the data
How big is the Little Knife Fire?
As of Aug 18, 2026, 09:15 UTC, the Little Knife Fire is reported at 4,815 acres (peak reported size 6,000 acres). No change in reported size or containment since Aug 17, 2026, 09:00 UTC.
Is the Little Knife Fire contained?
Not fully. It was 90% contained as of Aug 18, 2026, 09:15 UTC. Containment is the share of the fire's edge that has a control line; it is reported by the incident team and can lag the ground situation.
Where is the Little Knife Fire?
The reported point of origin is at 48.1611, -91.1048 in Lake County, Minnesota. Nearest towns: Ely (39 mi SW), Grand Marais (46 mi SE), Babbitt (50 mi SW). The map on this page shows the most recent mapped perimeter.
Is the Little Knife Fire still burning?
The federal feed still lists it as active as of Aug 18, 2026, 09:15 UTC; no satellite heat detections were matched to it in the last 24 hours.
Where do I find evacuation orders for the Little Knife Fire?
From the county sheriff and local emergency management, not from this site. Check the official Minnesota sources on our Minnesota page and your county’s alert system. FireRiskHere is for awareness only.
How current is this page?
The numbers come from the National Interagency Fire Center's WFIGS incident feed and the WFIGS perimeter service, refreshed every 15 minutes, plus NASA FIRMS satellite detections hourly. This page was last updated Aug 18, 2026, 09:15 UTC. Acreage and containment are what the incident team reports and can lag by hours.
About this page
This page is generated automatically for every wildfire whose reported size reaches 1,000 acres, from FireRiskHere’s archive of the National Interagency Fire Center’s WFIGS incident feed (captured every 15 minutes), the WFIGS interagency perimeter service, and NASA FIRMS satellite detections. It stays online after the fire is contained as a record of the incident. Nothing here is an official notice — for evacuation orders and road closures follow your county sheriff and local emergency management. How the site works →