Wildfire near Refojos de Basto, Portugal (2026)

Wildfire near Refojos de Basto — Sentinel-2 true color

Wildfire near Refojos de Basto — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego)

True view Fire view

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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

Key facts

Source: NASA FIRMS

Official statusMonitoringNot fought: watched. Usually remote terrain.

JurisdictionANEPC

The story so far

About 10 km southwest of Refojos de Basto.

Summary written on Aug 23, while the fire was still active. It has since ended — the figures above are current.

Satellites are picking up an intense heat signature over an active wildfire burning near Refojos de Basto, Portugal, where six thermal detections over the past 48 hours highlight the ongoing spread across the area. The fire has consumed 150 hectares, or 371 acres, since it started on August 22, 2026, within a region where the typical fire season runs from June to October.

A response force of 42 personnel deployed by ANEPC is currently working to suppress the blaze. This incident unfolds during a broader national fire year in which 64,105 hectares have burned so far in 2026, tracking 39 percent below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire burned in Portugal for 2 days. In total it burned about 150 ha (371 acres) — around 1.5 km². That size is an estimate from satellite hotspots, not a measured area.

In the Northern Hemisphere, wildfire activity usually peaks during the warm, dry months — roughly May through October.