Is there a fire near Brits right now?
Wildfires near Brits
Updated
22 fire clusters within 80 km; nearest 7 km ESE, 1 detection in the last 48 h Latest satellite pass with a detection: Sun 2:32 pm local (2026-10-25 12:32 UTC).
Live satellite fire detections within 80 km of Brits, North West, South Africa, grouped into fire clusters, with the wind direction for smoke. Times are local (Africa/Johannesburg).
- Fire clusters within 80 km
- 22 last 48 h
- Nearest fire
- 7 km ESE 7 km ESE of Brits
- Hotspot detections nearby
- 86 VIIRS 375 m pixels, last 48 h
- Strongest fire radiative power
- 26 MW low-intensity
- Wind now
- N 6 km/h gusts 13 km/h, humidity 19%
Fires near Brits right now
NASA's VIIRS sensors detected 86 thermal hotspots in 22 separate clusters within 80 km of Brits, North West, South Africa in the last 48 h. The closest is 7 km ESE of the city centre (7 km ESE of Brits), with 1 detection and a peak fire radiative power of 1 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 77 km SSE (4 km E of Alberton) with 11 detections; first seen Sat 2 am and last seen Sun 2 am local time.
Across South Africa there are 175 fire clusters in the same window, 17 of them in North West.
| Fire cluster | From city | Detections | Peak FRP | First seen | Last seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 km ESE of Brits | 7 km ESE | 1 | 1 MW | Sat 2:24 am | Sat 2:24 am |
| 15 km E of Brits | 15 km E | 3 | 14 MW | Sun 2:32 pm | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 19 km WSW of Brits | 17 km WSW | 5 | 9 MW | Sat 2:24 am | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 22 km WNW of Brits | 22 km WNW | 3 | 3 MW | Sun 2:05 am | Sun 2:05 am |
| 23 km NW of Mabopane | 28 km NNE | 1 | 2 MW | Sat 2:49 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
| 18 km ESE of Rustenburg | 37 km WSW | 7 | 14 MW | Sat 2:24 am | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 12 km N of Pretoria | 40 km E | 1 | 6 MW | Sat 2:49 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
| 9 km SE of Soshanguve | 40 km ENE | 2 | 3 MW | Sun 2:32 pm | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 44 km NNW of Brits | 44 km NNW | 4 | 19 MW | Sat 2:49 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
| 4 km E of Krugersdorp | 49 km S | 5 | 26 MW | Sat 2:49 pm | Sun 2:05 am |
| 49 km NNE of Rustenburg | 54 km NW | 1 | 5 MW | Sun 2:32 pm | Sun 2:32 pm |
| 55 km NW of Soshanguve | 55 km N | 8 | 17 MW | Sat 1:10 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
| 46 km NNE of Rustenburg | 59 km NW | 2 | 1 MW | Sat 2:24 am | Sat 2:24 am |
| 51 km NW of Soshanguve | 60 km N | 3 | 13 MW | Sat 1:10 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
| 16 km E of Centurion | 62 km ESE | 7 | 9 MW | Sat 1:10 pm | Sat 2:49 pm |
Smoke and wind
Wind at Brits is from the N at 6 km/h (gusts 13 km/h), so smoke near the city drifts toward the S. Relative humidity is 19% and the temperature 26°C.
Brits 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 Brits 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.