Is there a fire near Brakpan right now?
Wildfires near Brakpan
Updated
17 fire clusters within 80 km; nearest 5 km S, 3 detections in the last 24 h Latest satellite pass with a detection: Mon 1:46 am local (2026-10-25 23:46 UTC).
Live satellite fire detections within 80 km of Brakpan, Gauteng, South Africa, grouped into fire clusters, with the wind direction for smoke. Times are local (Africa/Johannesburg).
- Fire clusters within 80 km
- 17 last 24 h
- Nearest fire
- 5 km S 6 km S of Brakpan
- Hotspot detections nearby
- 85 VIIRS 375 m pixels, last 24 h
- Strongest fire radiative power
- 14 MW low-intensity
- Wind now
- N 5 km/h gusts 11 km/h, humidity 55%
Fires near Brakpan right now
NASA's VIIRS sensors detected 85 thermal hotspots in 17 separate clusters within 80 km of Brakpan, Gauteng, South Africa in the last 24 h. The closest is 5 km S of the city centre (6 km S of Brakpan), with 3 detections and a peak fire radiative power of 3 MW, which is low-intensity for a single 375 m pixel.
4 clusters are within 25 km, close enough that smoke, ash or road closures may affect the city. Distances are measured from the city centre to the nearest detection, not to the fire's edge.
The largest nearby cluster by detections is 76 km ESE (10 km E of eMbalenhle) with 24 detections; first seen Sun 2 am and last seen Mon 1 am local time.
Across South Africa there are 112 fire clusters in the same window, 17 of them in Gauteng.
| Fire cluster | From city | Detections | Peak FRP | First seen | Last seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 km S of Brakpan | 5 km S | 3 | 3 MW | Sun 2:32 pm | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 14 km SSE of Etwatwa | 15 km E | 1 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 9 km WNW of Etwatwa | 15 km N | 2 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 5 km ENE of Alberton | 19 km W | 6 | 2 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 11 km ENE of Thembisa | 29 km N | 4 | 2 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| at Johannesburg | 32 km W | 2 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 7 km NNE of Thembisa | 35 km NNW | 1 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 10 km SW of Tokoza | 37 km SW | 1 | 4 MW | Sun 2:32 pm | Sun 2:32 pm |
| at Vereeniging | 56 km SW | 16 | 4 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 4 km ENE of Krugersdorp | 58 km WNW | 4 | 2 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Sun 2:05 am |
| 8 km SW of Soweto | 58 km W | 1 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 45 km E of Pretoria | 63 km NNE | 2 | 1 MW | Mon 1:46 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 9 km N of Vanderbijlpark | 65 km SW | 11 | 8 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 26 km SW of Emalahleni | 70 km ENE | 2 | 1 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
| 10 km E of eMbalenhle | 76 km ESE | 24 | 9 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Mon 1:46 am |
Smoke and wind
Wind at Brakpan is from the N at 5 km/h (gusts 11 km/h), so smoke near the city drifts toward the S. Relative humidity is 55% and the temperature 18°C.
Brakpan is not directly downwind of the nearest fire at the moment, though winds shift and plumes from larger fires can still reach the city.
Smoke shows up first as PM2.5 on air-quality monitors; the Brakpan air quality page has the live reading.
Evacuations and official information
GodsView shows satellite detections only. It does not know fire perimeters, containment or evacuation zones. Always follow evacuation orders from local authorities.
The Global Wildfire Information System, GWIS (gwis.jrc.ec.europa.eu), maps fire danger and burnt areas worldwide; evacuation orders come from national civil protection and local authorities.
About satellite fire detections
Satellite thermal hotspots are not all wildfires: gas flares, steel works, volcanoes and planned agricultural or prescribed burns show up too. VIIRS passes over most places about twice a day, so a fire can start or grow between passes, and thick smoke or cloud can hide one.
Fire radiative power (FRP) is the heat a fire gives off, in megawatts per pixel: under 10 MW is usually a small or smouldering fire, over 100 MW an intense flaming front.
Wildfires near other cities
More for this area
Data: NASA FIRMS (VIIRS active fires), Open-Meteo, GeoNames.