Calamity
highWildfireCalamity Score: 44

Wildfire near Az Zubayr

IraqNASA FIRMS (VIIRS)

Recorded by satellite 168 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 180th strongest of the 279 detections recorded within 20 km of this point since 8 March 2026. The last comparable one was on 14 March 2026. 8 more were recorded here in the fortnight before it.

What the source measured

NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) reported 39 fire pixels with a combined fire radiative power of 74 MW, at nominal confidence, 24 km from Az Zubayr.

The 39 pixels cover about 5.5 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.

An estimated 693,643 people live within 35 km of this point.

Nearby, since 8 March 2026

How we know

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

Our own score for this event is 44 out of 100, at 58 % confidence.

The score is ours, computed from intensity, exposed population and local history — not the source’s.

Event Data

TypeWildfire
Severityhigh
Calamity Score (ours)44 / 100
Our confidence58%
Coordinates30.5286, 47.5088
Nearest CityAz Zubayr (24 km)
Population Exposed693.6K within 35 km
Impact Tiersevere
Date2026-03-15 — time not reported by the source

Score Breakdown

40
intensity
85
population
0
cascading
20
historical

Technical Details

Brightness351.01
Frp74.42
PixelCount39
Confidencenominal

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.

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Calamity.live data shows a fire event with CalamityScore 44/100, near Az Zubayr (Iraq), based on data from firms. Source: Calamity.live, a platform aggregating real-time data from 194 scientific monitoring sources.