Cottonwood and Morrill Fires Update: March 19, 2026

Cottonwood and Morrill Fires Update: March 19, 2026

RELEASE DATE: Mar 19, 2026

Thursday, March 19, 2026 - 9 a.m. MDT

Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1

Justin Conrad, Incident Commander

Phone (public and media inquiries): 719-283-6829, 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. MDT

Email: [email protected]

Linktree: linktr.ee/morrillandcottonwoodfires

Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) 1 is managing the Cottonwood and Morrill Fires under the direction of the State of Nebraska.

Current Situation: The Cottonwood and Morrill Fires' acreage figures changed due to additional aerial and ground surveys that provided fire managers with more precise perimeter information. Despite hot, dry and windy conditions Wednesday, neither fire spread beyond established firelines. All fire activity that did occur was on interior portions of both fires as pockets of unburned vegetation ignited and were consumed.

As anticipated, fire managers increased containment on both fires due to several days and nights of a coordinated and effective firefighting effort. However, heat can linger in the ground and smoldering vegetation near containment lines, so crews must continue to find and extinguish those heat sources, which takes time to complete on fires of this magnitude.

With critical fire weather conditions persisting, incident resources remain ready to quickly respond and give initial-attack assistance to local volunteer fire departments. Helicopters are available to conduct water drops should fire activity increase or new fires start. Drones are assisting firefighters with perimeter mapping and hotspot detection. Both fires are also being monitored overnight.

Cottonwood Fire: On Wednesday, the fire was most active in Divisions A and D from Jeffrey Reservoir westward. Suppressing the fire on that northwest corner is taking more time because the rugged terrain requires crews to access the fire on foot. Also, the abundant woody vegetation retains heat, flares up under current weather conditions, and is more resistant to control than grass. This area of the fire is a priority for fire managers, and five twenty-person hand crews are constructing fireline directly on the fire's edge, cutting trees near the fireline to minimize fire activity and extinguishing flames or hotspots they encounter to prevent additional fire growth.

Morrill Fire: Fire activity and smoke production was moderate Wednesday despite very dry, warm and windy conditions. While many firefighters continue to work along the fire perimeter, some are accessing the interior to ensure all smoldering heat is extinguished in tree windbreaks near structures. A drone equipped with infrared sensors detected several areas of heat-primarily in hardwood draws-scattered throughout Divisions KK and HH north and west of Lake McConaughy. These areas of residual heat are all interior and are not expected to burn beyond existing firelines or containment lines.

Weather and Fire Behavior: Today, with temperatures highs in the low 80s, relative humidity lows in the teens and wind gusts up to 25 mph, a red flag warning is in effect for the Morrill Fire area from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. MDT. The warming and drying trend will peak on Saturday, with 90-degree temperatures and single-digit relative humidities expected. These extreme weather conditions have potential to increase fire activity within fire perimeters as unburned vegetation ignites and readily burns. Any new fires would likely spread rapidly. Visit Fire.AirNow.gov for air-quality information.

Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR): TFRs are in place over both fires (tfr.faa.gov). Wildfires are no-fly zones for unauthorized aircraft, including drones. If you fly, we can't. For more information, visit knowbeforeyoufly.org.

Cottonwood Fire Statistics

Size: 128,036 acres

Containment: 78%

Personnel: 251

Cause: undetermined

Morrill Fire Statistics

Size: 643,074 acres

Containment: 67%

Personnel: 202

Cause: undetermined

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Cottonwood & Morrill Update 03-19-26