World · Big Rock Fire · ArchiveBig Rock Fire Burns 1,000+ Acres Overnight, Evacuations Ordered in Southeast IdahoAired August 2, 2026 at 7:22 AM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00The Big Rock Fire in Southeastern Idaho0:02burned more than a thousand acres0:03overnight and local officials have now0:06issued evacuation orders for communities0:08directly in its path. The fire0:10accelerated under the cover of darkness,0:12the hours when firefighting is most0:13difficult because aircraft are grounded0:15and ground crews work with reduced0:17visibility. The fire didn't creep0:19overnight, it ran and the communities0:21now under evacuation orders woke up to a0:24fire line close enough that officials0:25decided the risk of staying outweighed0:27the disruption of leaving. Authorities0:29have confirmed the fast growth and0:31evacuation orders are in place, but the0:34exact towns and the number of homes0:35under threat have not yet been named.0:38The fire is burning in a region already0:40stretched thin by wildfires across the0:42west.0:43In Washington, the governor declared a0:45wildfire emergency Saturday and0:47activated the National Guard. Oregon is0:50fighting 30 large fires simultaneously0:52with over 300,000 acres already burned.0:55The Big Rock Fire is the newest entry0:56competing for the same finite pool of0:58aircraft, crews and equipment. The1:00immediate question is whether the1:02evacuation orders were issued with1:04enough time for residents to leave1:05safely and whether the overnight growth1:07already outpaced the map those orders1:09were drawn on.Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗