EndedUpdated · Source: NASA FIRMS

Wildfire near Ortega

Started · size estimated by satellite

Estimated size
580 hectares
from satellite heat
Lasted
3 days
from Aug 14, 2026
Wildfire near Ortega — Sentinel-2 true color Wildfire near Ortega — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego) True view Fire view
⟷
True view (left): as the eye sees it.
Fire view (right): infrared (SWIR), sees through smoke and brings out the heat.

🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 brown = already burned
🟠 orange = fire right now

Drag to compare: normal photo on the left, heat brought out on the right.

Green: vegetationBrown: already burnedOrange: fire right nowSentinel-2 · Copernicus

The story so far

About 5 km north of Ortega.

Burning across a span of seventy-seven days near the municipality of Ortega in Colombia, a wildfire that started on August 14, 2026, has now ended. During its active period, satellites recorded an intense heat signature from the fire front, alongside a rough satellite estimate of five hundred eighty hectares, or one thousand four hundred thirty-three acres, affected by the flames.

This event unfolded within the region's typical fire season, characterized by the dry season. Broader conditions across the country show a total of one million thirty-three thousand four hundred ninety-four hectares burned so far in 2026, placing the national burned area fifty-one percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire burned in Colombia for 2 days. In total it burned about 580 ha (1,433 acres) — around 5.8 km². That size is an estimate from satellite hotspots, not a measured area.

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 Colombia

Across Colombia, roughly 1,041,600 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 50% below the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus GWIS.

Alerts near Ortega

This fire is over. We'll email you if satellites detect new fire in this area. Free, no account.

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Colombia today7 days
0Fires · 7d62Hotspots 48h0Hectares · 7d
Last 7 days · steadyHow many named wildfires were burning on each of the last 7 days. It rises when there are more than on the earlier days.
All Colombia wildfires

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