Bakersfield

Summary

• Fire hazard severity zones

  Share of the land in each CAL FIRE hazard class

  Map
  1. Very High 679 acres · Local Responsibility Area 1%
  2. High 3,667 acres · 5 state, 3,662 local 4%
  3. Moderate 12,309 acres · 10 state, 12,299 local 13%
  4. Non-wildland 80,424 acres · Local Responsibility Area 83%
  5. Not mapped by CAL FIRE 139 acres · Mostly federal land <1%

  97,218 acres of land in all, 15 in the State Responsibility Area and 97,063 in the Local. State zones are the ones the State Fire Marshal designated, in effect since April 1, 2024. Local zones are CAL FIRE's 2025 recommendation, which each city or county adopts by ordinance and can make stricter. How to read fire zones

• Fire history

  The 10 largest of 53 fires that burned here

  Map
  1. 1997 Choctaw Fire 10,522 acres in total · Cause: Arson 3,046 acres here
  2. 2011 Breckenridge Complex 25,223 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,315 acres here
  3. 1994 Chevron Fire 1,232 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 937 acres here
  4. 1975 Hart Park Sw Fire 311 acres in total 286 acres here
  5. 1995 Outlaw Fire 339 acres in total · Cause: Arson 218 acres here
  6. 1969 Frank Noriega Fire 159 acres in total 148 acres here
  7. 1994 Paladino Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 137 acres here
  8. 1974 Adelaide Fire 4,108 acres in total 121 acres here
  9. 1996 Canyon Fire 3,336 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 109 acres here
  10. 1999 Richbar Complex 2,643 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 90 acres here

  And 43 smaller fires. The most recent was the 2025 River Fire, which burned 6 acres here. In all, 6,390 acres of Bakersfield have burned. Acres are the land each fire burned here, and fires that crossed less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history