12 fire pixels detected · FRP: 117 MW · ~1.7 km²
Geographic Context
This fire event occurred near Soweto (approximately 7 km away) in South Africa, a region where fynbos vegetation, dry winters, and strong winds create a distinct and recurring fire season. An estimated 1.1M people live within 20 km of the event location, placing this in the "severe" population impact tier.
Event Assessment
This event is a significant wildfire detected by satellite with a fire radiative power of 117 MW, suggesting active, intense burning across multiple detection pixels. Calamity.live has classified it as "high" severity with a severity value of 35.456. The computed Calamity Score is 57 out of 100, reflecting a moderate-impact event. The primary scoring components are: population (100), intensity (60), historical (30). Data for this event was sourced from firms, one of the 196 scientific monitoring sources aggregated by Calamity.live.
Regional Monitoring Context
South Africa has a documented history of fire events. Wildfire activity in the region is monitored through NASA FIRMS (Fire Information for Resource Management System), which provides near-real-time active fire data from MODIS and VIIRS satellites. Fire behavior is influenced by vegetation type, moisture content, wind patterns, and terrain — all factors that determine whether an initial ignition becomes a major event.
Event Data
| Type | Fire |
| Severity | high |
| Severity Value | 35.456 |
| Calamity Score | 57 / 100 |
| Confidence | 74% |
| Coordinates | -26.3286, 27.8906 |
| Nearest City | Soweto (7 km) |
| Population Exposed | 1.1M within 20 km |
| Impact Tier | severe |
| Timestamp | 2026-07-20T11:28:00.000Z |
Score Breakdown
Technical Details
| Brightness | 352.4 |
| Frp | 117.28 |
| PixelCount | 12 |
| Confidence | nominal |
| Area Km2 | 1.6800000000000002 |
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.
This data is aggregated algorithmically from scientific sources. Not a replacement for official emergency warnings.
Calamity.live data shows a fire event with CalamityScore 57/100, near Soweto (South Africa), based on data from firms. Source: Calamity.live, a platform aggregating real-time data from 196 scientific monitoring sources.