Recorded by satellite 45 days ago.
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 31st strongest of the 74 detections recorded within 20 km of this point since 21 May 2026. The last comparable one was on 15 July 2026. 26 more were recorded here in the fortnight before it.
What the source measured
NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) reported 21 fire pixels with a combined fire radiative power of 221 MW, at high confidence, 3 km from Vryheid.
The 21 pixels cover about 2.9 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.
An estimated 154,222 people live within 35 km of this point.
Nearby, since 21 May 2026
- July 8, 2026 · score 71 · 1.7 km
- July 6, 2026 · score 71 · 5.0 km
- July 5, 2026 · score 48 · 6.1 km
How we know
One source: NASA FIRMS (VIIRS). Not yet confirmed by a second, independent source.
Our own score for this event is 48 out of 100, at 74 % confidence.
The score is ours, computed from intensity, exposed population and local history — not the source’s.
Event Data
| Type | Wildfire |
| Severity | high |
| Calamity Score (ours) | 48 / 100 |
| Our confidence | 74% |
| Coordinates | -27.7900, 30.8148 |
| Nearest City | Vryheid (3 km) |
| Population Exposed | 154.2K within 35 km |
| Impact Tier | severe |
| Timestamp | 2026-07-16T12:42:00.000Z |
Score Breakdown
Technical Details
| Brightness | 367 |
| Frp | 220.59 |
| PixelCount | 21 |
| Confidence | high |
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 10 February 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.
Calamity.live data shows a fire event with CalamityScore 48/100, near Vryheid (South Africa), based on data from firms. Source: Calamity.live, a platform aggregating real-time data from 194 scientific monitoring sources.