Smoke from the Elbow Creek Fire fills the sky on Thursday, July 15, 2021.

WALLOWA COUNTY — The Elbow Creek Fire, which is located in the northwest corner of Wallowa County, has quickly extended its acreage to become the third largest fire in Oregon. As of 9:10 a.m. on Saturday, July 17, the Elbow Creek fire is up to approximately 10,941 acres.

The Elbow Creek Fire is well behind the acreage of the Bootleg Fire just northeast of Klamath Falls, which has grown to over 280,000 acres as of 9:39 a.m. Saturday. After the fire started on Tuesday, July 6, it evolved into the nation’s current largest wildfire.

The Jack Fire presently stands as Oregon’s second largest fire at 16,667 acres as of 9:21 p.m. on Friday, July 16. The wildfire began on Monday, July 5, due to an unknown cause and is currently at a 35% containment rate.

The Elbow Creek Fire started ten days later than the Jack Fire but is only about 7,000 acres smaller. While the cause of the fire is still considered unknown, winds and hot temperatures are contributing to the fire’s rapid growth. The quick spread of the wildfire resulted in the evacuation of Troy and Eden Bench.

The Elbow Creek fire surpassed the Grandview Fire, which has extended its acreage to over 6,000 since starting on Sunday, July 11. The Wrentham Market fire started on Tuesday, June 29, and reached upwards of 7,222 acres, but was fully contained on July 4.

According to InciWeb there is currently no containment on the Elbow Creek Fire, as firefighters actively look to limit the spread of this wildfire.