14 fire pixels detected · FRP: 133 MW · ~2.0 km²
Geographic Context
This fire event occurred near Waterloo (approximately 13 km away) in Sierra Leone, an area that experiences a range of natural hazards. An estimated 20.0K people live within 20 km of the event location, placing this in the "significant" population impact tier.
Event Assessment
This event is a significant wildfire detected by satellite with a fire radiative power of 133 MW, suggesting active, intense burning across multiple detection pixels. Calamity.live has classified it as "high" severity with a severity value of 40.658. The computed Calamity Score is 44 out of 100, reflecting a moderate-impact event. The primary scoring components are: historical (80), intensity (60), population (40). Data for this event was sourced from firms, one of the 250 scientific monitoring sources aggregated by Calamity.live.
Regional Monitoring Context
Sierra Leone 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 | 40.658 |
| Calamity Score | 44 / 100 |
| Confidence | 74% |
| Coordinates | 8.4070, -12.9763 |
| Nearest City | Waterloo (13 km) |
| Population Exposed | 20.0K within 20 km |
| Impact Tier | significant |
| Timestamp | 2026-05-20T13:59:00.000Z |
Score Breakdown
Technical Details
| Brightness | 343.98 |
| Frp | 133.29 |
| PixelCount | 14 |
| Confidence | nominal |
| Area Km2 | 1.9600000000000002 |
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 44/100, near Waterloo (Sierra Leone), based on data from firms. Source: Calamity.live, a platform aggregating real-time data from 197 scientific monitoring sources.