Wildfire near Barreira da Cruz
True color
Fire (SWIR)
Infrared / SWIR (right): sees through smoke.
🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 red/brown = burned
🟠 orange = active fire
Imagery: Sentinel-2 (Copernicus). Drag to compare smoke vs. infrared.
Heat detections: NASA FIRMS (last 48h).
An active wildfire is currently burning near Barreira da Cruz, Brazil, having scorched 830 hectares (2,051 acres) since it started on August 17, 2026. Orbiting satellites are picking up an intense heat signature from the active fire front, with 33 thermal detections clustered nearby over the last 48 hours.
This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which runs from August to October. Despite active fires in the area, the broader national landscape shows a different trend, with 2,918,264 hectares burned across the country so far in 2026, marking a 91% decrease compared to the two-decade average.
In context
This wildfire has been burning in Brazil for less than a day. So far it has affected roughly 830 ha (2,051 acres) — about 8.3 km².
Close to the tropics, fires tend to follow the dry season and are often linked to land-clearing rather than a single summer peak.
The bigger picture in Brazil
Across Brazil, roughly 2,918,264 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 91% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.
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Community reports
Reports from people near the fire · unverified
Not official emergency information. In an emergency, contact fire services/authorities.