Find all stories in the OPB series “Labor Day fires: Five years later” here.

Starting Labor Day weekend 2020, wildfires charred Oregon’s land, choked the air, and cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars — maybe billions. Here are six maps, charts and videos that help us visualize what happened.

Mapping a state on fire

Starting Sept. 7, 2020, 21 fires burned across Oregon, most in the western third of the state. Click the image below for an interactive look at the boundaries of the largest Labor Day fires.

The smoke rolls in

Footage from a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite shows wildfire smoke filling the sky above Oregon as fires spread across the state.

Mounting costs

There are many ways to count the cost of the Labor Day fires: the cost to state and local governments that responded to the flames, and then cleaned up the destruction; the cost to the forest products industry that saw millions of trees go up in smoke; and the cost to utility companies that are paying out hundreds of millions to people who sued over the fires.

There is no single accounting of the true cost to Oregon. Here’s an accounting from some of the groups affected.

Landscapes transformed

Over Labor Day weekend 2020, the Beachie Creek and Lionshead fires merged into the Santiam Canyon Fire. OPB had flown over the Western Cascades before they were charred by the conflagration. After the fires, we returned to see how the landscape had changed. Push play below for an aerial view of the transformation.

Editor’s note: OPB is exploring the lessons learned and journeys taken since Labor Day 2020, when fires swept across the state. Find all stories in the OPB series “Labor Day fires: Five years later”here. Find additional wildfire resources here.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/08/28/6-ways-visualize-2020-labor-day-fires/