Sour Biscuit Fire and Not Creative Fire? How wildfires get their names

When a wildfire breaks out, its name gives first responders a way to track and prioritize different fires.

According to AccuWeather, dispatch centers sending the initial crews to a wildfire usually name the fire, though they can also be named by the first engine on the scene or another fire official.

Names usually come from a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake or mountain near the fire's origin.

The name of a fire doesn't always reflect its exact location; sometimes there aren't enough landmarks in an area to give a fire a unique name. For example, the Sour Biscuit Fire was named due to its proximity to Sourdough Gulch and Biscuit Creek.

In 2015, emergency crews in Idaho couldn't come up with a creative name for the 57th fire of the season, so they named it the Not Creative Fire.