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See where a power line fire would run
Pick a power line on your map as the start of the fire, set a strong, dry wind, and see which slopes and canyons it would burn through. Compare lines to decide where to clear vegetation first.
See how a wildfire could spread, hour by hour
Draw an area, choose where a fire starts, set the wind and how dry it is, and watch the fire grow across real terrain and fuels. Drag the time slider to see where it reaches by each hour. Your first 3 runs are free.
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Why use Scribble Maps for wildfire planning
Real terrain and fuels
The fire burns across detailed terrain and each country's national fuel map: LANDFIRE in the US, Natural Resources Canada's fuel types in Canada. It runs faster uphill, through dry brush and into the trees, and stops at roads, rock and water.
Watch it grow
Drag one slider from the first hour to the last and the fire grows across the map right away. Change the wind or the dryness and see a new fire in about a second.
On a map you can share
Each run goes on your map with a report card: area burned, fastest spread, flame length and crown fire. Share it by link with your team, a client or the public. No GIS software needed.
Built for utilities, land managers, planners and insurers
Check how close a fire could come to homes
Let a fire come in across the upwind edge of an area, the way a wildfire in the hills moves toward town. See how far it runs, how fast, and where it reaches the first streets.
Compare a dry day with an extreme one
Run the same fire with fuels that are dry, very dry or extremely dry, or with a different wind. The burned area, spread rate and flame length change right away, so you can see how much the day matters.
Watch the fire hour by hour
Drag the time slider to see where the fire is after 1 hour, 3 hours or 12. The fire front, the flame length and crown fire are colored on the map, and the report card follows the time.
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“I am a realtor, and this software has made it super easy to create a customizable map to share with our clients to map out our next territories.”
Features that matter
- Wildfire spread across any area in the United States and Canada, up to 50,000 acres
- Fuels and tree canopy from LANDFIRE, the national US fuel map, at 30 m
- In Canada, Natural Resources Canada's national fuel type map at 30 m, burned with Canada's Fire Behaviour Prediction System
- 1 m USGS lidar terrain across most of the US
- Rothermel surface fire and Van Wagner crown fire, the models behind FlamMap and FARSITE
- Start the fire across the upwind edge, at a marker or along a line such as a power line
- Wind from today's National Weather Service forecast, or any wind you set
- Four fuel dryness levels, from moderate to extreme
- Simulate 2 to 48 hours, with a time slider that replays the fire instantly
- Burned area, fastest spread, longest flames and crown fire share
- A confidence line for the fuel data under each result
- Results saved on your map with a report card and slider
- Ask Scribble AI to run a fire simulation from a marker or line on your map
- 3 free runs on any account, more with Pro Business
Scribble AI
Build maps with plain English
Tell Scribble AI what you need. Try “draw a 500m buffer around every site,” “import this CSV and color by status,” or “measure the route from the depot to each stop.” It does it in seconds. No GIS training needed, and your team gets the same map, ready to share.
Try Scribble AI →What customers are saying
“When we started using Scribble Maps, it was super easy for our whole team to get on the same page and quickly start using it together. The support we’ve received from Scribble Maps has been amazing too. We know that if the sh*t is hitting the fan, they’re super quick to get back to us and help us understand how to solve any issues.”
Try it free, then go Pro Business
Pro Business
$100 per month
- 3 free fire runs on any Scribble Maps account
- Free 7-day trial for eligible first-time subscribers
- $90 a month when billed yearly
- Fire, Flood, Site Analysis, Farming, Traffic and every other Pro Business kit
Frequently asked questions
How do I simulate a wildfire on a map?
Open the Fire kit, draw an area or pick one you already drew, and click Create layer. Choose where the fire starts, set the wind and how dry the fuels are, and drag the time slider to watch it spread.
Where does the data come from?
In the US, fuels and tree canopy come from LANDFIRE, the national fuel map from the US Department of the Interior and the US Department of Agriculture. In Canada, they come from Natural Resources Canada's national fuel type map. Terrain is Scribble Maps elevation, from USGS 1 m lidar across most of the US. In the US, the wind starts from the National Weather Service forecast for your area.
How accurate is it?
It uses each country's standard fire behavior models: in the US the ones behind FlamMap and FARSITE, in Canada the Canadian Fire Behaviour Prediction System. We test them against independent implementations and published tables. It is a planning tool for comparing places and scenarios, not a forecast of a real fire. Our help article explains how we test it, the benchmarks we are adding, and what it leaves out. How accurate is the Fire kit?
Do fire services use Scribble Maps?
Yes. In 2011 a wildfire burned 40% of the town of Slave Lake in Alberta, Canada. Lesser Slave Regional Fire Service now keeps a safety rating for every home on a shared Scribble Maps map: green for safe, yellow for problematic and red for unsafe. The whole crew sees the risks as soon as they get the call. Read the case study
Can I use it during an active fire?
No. It does not model embers that start new spot fires, firefighting or changing weather, so real fires can move faster. For an active fire, follow your local emergency services and official evacuation orders.
Can I start the fire from a power line?
Yes. Draw or import the line, then choose Along a line you pick in the kit and pick it. The fire starts along the whole line. You can also start a fire at a marker or across the upwind edge of the area.
Which areas are covered?
The United States and Canada. In the US the fire burns on LANDFIRE fuels with the US fire behavior models; in Canada on Natural Resources Canada's fuel types with Canada's own Fire Behaviour Prediction System. Areas can be up to 50,000 acres.
What does it cost?
Every signed-in account gets 3 free fire runs. After that the Fire kit is part of Pro Business, at $100 a month or $90 a month billed yearly, with a free 7-day trial for eligible first-time subscribers.