Montana had some intense wildfires this year - but the total acreage that was burned was less than average.
The average acreage burned per year in Montana is 470,000 acres. This was the fourth year in a row with fire activity below that average.
One of the most notable fires sparked on July 9 - the Horse Gulch Fire near Canyon Ferry became the biggest early-season fire, burning more than 15,000 acres.
One person fighting the Horse Gulch fire died when a single-engine air tanker (SEAT) crashed into Hauser Lake on July 10. The plane was contracted to the U.S. Forest Service and was scooping water to assist with firefighting efforts. The pilot was identified as Juliana Turchetti, 45 years old - click here to read more.
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Days later, lightning sparked numerous fires in southeast Montana including the Deadman and McGhee fires that burned nearly 20,000 acres.
By the end of July, parts of the Bitterroot lit up with the Miller Peak, Railroad, and Johnson fires, burning thousands of acres. The Johnson and Railroad fires came back to life a few weeks ago and blew smoke across Montana in October.
The end of August got busy with the Daly, Ratio Mountain, Big Hollow, and Sharrot Creek fires igniting around the Bitterroot and western Montana again.
In southeast Montana, the Remington fire started in Wyoming, burning into Montana, scorching a total of nearly 200,000 acres.
According to the Northern Rockies Regional Coordination Center, Montana had 344,466 acres burned.
An estimated 700 fires were sparked by lightning, and about 1,300 were human-caused.
Those numbers are not final just yet.
