Is there a fire near Emalahleni right now?

Wildfires near Emalahleni

Updated Sun, 25 Oct 2026 12:32:00 GMT

18 fire clusters within 80 km; nearest 6 km WNW, 11 detections 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 Emalahleni, Mpumalanga, South Africa, grouped into fire clusters, with the wind direction for smoke. Times are local (Africa/Johannesburg).

Fire clusters within 80 km: 18 last 48 h
Nearest fire: 6 km WNW 7 km WNW of Emalahleni
Hotspot detections nearby: 141 VIIRS 375 m pixels, last 48 h
Strongest fire radiative power: 52 MW moderate
Wind now: N 17 km/h gusts 39 km/h, humidity 40%

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Fires near Emalahleni right now

NASA's VIIRS sensors detected 141 thermal hotspots in 18 separate clusters within 80 km of Emalahleni, Mpumalanga, South Africa in the last 48 h. The closest is 6 km WNW of the city centre (7 km WNW of Emalahleni), with 11 detections and a peak fire radiative power of 10 MW, which is low-intensity for a single 375 m pixel.

5 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 68 km S (9 km E of eMbalenhle) with 38 detections; first seen Sat 2 am and last seen Sun 2 pm local time.

Across South Africa there are 175 fire clusters in the same window, 40 of them in Mpumalanga.

Fire cluster	From city	Detections	Peak FRP	First seen	Last seen
7 km WNW of Emalahleni	6 km WNW	11	10 MW	Sat 2:24 am	Sun 2:32 pm
16 km S of Emalahleni	13 km S	21	4 MW	Sat 2:24 am	Sun 2:05 am
7 km WSW of Middelburg	17 km ENE	20	11 MW	Sun 12:22 am	Sun 2:05 am
18 km SSE of Emalahleni	18 km SSE	1	1 MW	Sun 2:05 am	Sun 2:05 am
24 km SW of Emalahleni	24 km SW	1	1 MW	Sun 2:05 am	Sun 2:05 am
27 km W of Emalahleni	26 km W	6	16 MW	Sat 2:49 pm	Sun 2:05 am
5 km ESE of Middelburg	26 km ENE	15	7 MW	Sat 2:24 am	Sun 2:05 am
38 km WNW of Emalahleni	37 km WNW	6	4 MW	Sun 12:22 am	Sun 2:05 am
31 km SE of Somaroboro	38 km NNW	3	1 MW	Sun 12:22 am	Sun 2:05 am
48 km WNW of Emalahleni	48 km WNW	2	6 MW	Sat 1:10 pm	Sat 2:49 pm
24 km S of Somaroboro	51 km NW	8	52 MW	Sat 2:49 pm	Sun 2:32 pm
35 km ESE of Middelburg	54 km E	1	1 MW	Sun 2:05 am	Sun 2:05 am
12 km SSE of Somaroboro	59 km NW	2	12 MW	Sat 1:10 pm	Sat 1:10 pm
20 km SSW of Somaroboro	64 km NW	3	9 MW	Sun 2:05 am	Sun 2:32 pm
9 km E of eMbalenhle	68 km S	38	21 MW	Sat 2:24 am	Sun 2:32 pm

Smoke and wind

Wind at Emalahleni is from the N at 17 km/h (gusts 39 km/h), so smoke near the city drifts toward the S. Relative humidity is 40% and the temperature 21°C.

Emalahleni 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 Emalahleni 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.