Calamity
HighWildfiresCS: 57 · v5

Wildfires in Botswana

BotswanaNASA FIRMS (VIIRS)

Right now

The most recent data we hold from NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) arrived 14 minutes ago, and this point is in it.

2 other detections within 20 km in the last 24 hours, the nearest <1 km from here.

Recorded by satellite today.

A thermal anomaly is a snapshot of one satellite pass, not a record of a fire’s life: we cannot say whether it kept burning after that pass.

It is the 10th strongest of the 23 detections recorded within 20 km of this point since 4 June 2026. The last comparable one was on 13 September 2026. 8 more were recorded here in the fortnight before it.

What the source measured

NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) reported 268 fire pixels with a combined fire radiative power of 1759 MW, at high confidence, 209 km from Jwaneng.

The 268 pixels cover about 37.5 km² — that is the footprint of the detection grid at 375 m resolution, not an estimate of how much land burned.

FIRMS does not report burned area, and neither do we.

Wind from NE at 11 km/h at 17:00 UTC, according to MET Norway.

Nearby, since 4 June 2026

How we know

One source: NASA FIRMS (VIIRS). Not yet confirmed by a second, independent source.

Our own score for this event is 57 out of 100.

This is our versioned heuristic index, not source severity or a calibrated probability. Urban PEI does not count unique people.

Wind: MET Norway Locationforecast, CC BY 4.0.

Computed under scoring rules v5. Rows carrying other versions were judged by different rules and are not directly comparable.

Event Data

TypeWildfires
SeverityHigh
Calamity Score (ours)57 / 100
Legacy data-support index0.64/1
Coordinates-23.3937, 23.1482
Nearest CityJwaneng (209 km)
Urban exposure index (PEI)0 within 50 km
Impact Tierminor
Timestamp2026-09-14T00:35:00.000Z
Sourcehttps://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/map/#d:24hrs;@23.148,-23.394,9z

Physical priority index · v5. Heuristic priority, not calibrated probability, predictive accuracy or damage. The legacy data-support index combines assigned source support and field availability. Urban PEI is distance-weighted and does not count unique people; zero does not establish that nobody is present. Model cards.

Source and revision timeline

Source: firms. Occurrence: 2026-09-14T00:35:00.000Z.

First archived: 2026-09-14T02:24:44.976Z. Material modification: not recorded.

Retained revisions are prospective; earlier versions may be unavailable. No revision entry does not prove that a record never changed.

  1. 2026-09-14T06:12:20.802Z · model_change

    Index 5757; severity highhigh; version 45.

Score Breakdown

95
intensity
0
Urban PEI term
70
Scenario weight
48
Recorded reference / batch anomaly

Technical Details

Brightness367
Frp1759.3
PixelCount268
Confidencehigh

Cascade Risks

air quality emergency

Safety Information

If a wildfire is approaching: follow evacuation orders immediately. Do not wait to see the fire. Close all windows and doors, remove combustible materials from around your home, and have an emergency go-bag ready. Air quality can deteriorate rapidly even at distance from the fire front — monitor local air quality advisories.

Series begins 8 March 2026. Comparisons refer to that period only. Collection gap: 14-26 August 2026.

This data is aggregated algorithmically from scientific sources. Not a replacement for official emergency warnings.

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In the news nearby

A list of links found by GDELT for this place and this hazard in the last seven days. External, not ours: we have not read them and do not vouch for them.

No news is listed: GDELT was not available when this page was rendered.

GDELT Project · gdeltproject.org

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