Old footage of deer running from wildfire is recirculating online

A clip is being shared on social media with claims it shows a current wildfire in Wyoming, US, but it’s actually an older clip from the neighbouring state of Montana. 

The clip shows three elks (a subspecies of deer) running along a fence in what appears to be an attempt to escape flames. It has been shared with captions including: “BREAKING NEWS: Hurricane Milton is about to terrorize Florida... Meanwhile, Wyoming is now on fire with 73,000 acres burning! The media hasn't been reporting it! God help everyone involved! Sickening to watch wildlife have nowhere to run.”

While wildfires caused by lightning in Wyoming’s Bighorn National Forest on Monday 7 October cover more than 76,000 acres at the time of writing, this is not what the footage shows. 

A longer version of the clip was shared in 2021 by ABC News with the caption: “A firefighter filmed elk successfully fleeing the flames of a blaze in Montana's Big Horn County, which has scorched nearly 67,000 acres.” Other media organisations also shared the clip at the time. 

The firefighter, Christopher Sharpe, shared the footage on Facebook on 30 July 2021 saying: “BIG HORN COUNTY, MONTANA. The elk did make it out safe. (Cutting the fence would have scared the elk and deer into the fire more. We had people walking along the fence to help push them into the safe place).”

Both Wyoming and Montana have counties called Big Horn County on either side of the state border. 

We often see footage being shared with incorrect captions claiming it shows different times or places during significant news events, such as natural disasters. It’s important to consider whether a video shows what it claims to before sharing it online—for advice on how you can verify videos, read our guide.