Forest Fire (14723 ha) in South Africa 22 Jan 2024

Event summary

This forest fire is expected to have a low humanitarian impact based on the magnitude and the affected population and their vulnerability.

GDACS ID WF 1019131
Countries: South Africa
Start Date - Last detection*: 22 Jan 2024 - 02 Feb 2024
Duration (days): 11
People affected: 247 in the burned area
Burned area: 14723 ha
More Info: Global Wildfire Information System

*(Last detection of the thermal anomaly of the fire)

GDACS Score

For more info on GDACS alert score click here.

Detailed event map. European Union, 2024. Map produced by EC-JRC.
The boundaries and the names shown on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the European Union.

26 Jan 09:1626 Jan 10:1627 Jan 09:1628 Jan 09:1729 Jan 09:17

Impact Timeline

IDAlert colorGDACS ScorePopulation AffectedBurned Area (ha)Last UpdateSource
1 0.5 241 9569 26 Jan 2024 09:00 GWIS
2 0.5 241 9837 26 Jan 2024 10:04 GWIS
3 0.5 245 11295 27 Jan 2024 09:00 GWIS
4 0.5 247 13485 28 Jan 2024 09:01 GWIS
5 0.5 247 14723 29 Jan 2024 09:00 GWIS
6 0.5 321 17961 30 Jan 2024 09:00 GWIS
7 0.5 321 18321 02 Feb 2024 09:01 GWIS
8 0.5 323 18953 03 Feb 2024 09:00 GWIS

Fires Joined

This event includes other close identified fires:

Exposed population

The forest fire happened in South Africa , Province of Western Cape (population 3,417,675) . The nearest places are Cape Town, Wellington, Paarl, Malmesbury, Worcester, Moorreesburg, Stellenbosch, Kraaifontein, Somerset West, Strand, and Vishoek.



Radius Population
10 km 41000 people
5 km 25000 people
2 km 9100 people
1 km 1700 people
Burned Area <1000 people


Affected Provinces

Region Province Country Population
Western Cape South Africa 3.4 million people

Affected populated places

Name Region Province Country City class Population Distance
Wellington Western Cape South Africa City - 23 km
Paarl Western Cape South Africa City 190000 people 33 km
Malmesbury Western Cape South Africa City 35000 people 37 km
Worcester Western Cape South Africa City 130000 people 37 km
Moorreesburg Western Cape South Africa City - 55 km
Stellenbosch Western Cape South Africa City 93000 people 57 km
Kraaifontein Western Cape South Africa City - 58 km
Somerset West Western Cape South Africa City 180000 people 74 km
Strand Western Cape South Africa City - 77 km
Cape Town Western Cape South Africa Major city 3.4 million people 82 km
Vishoek Western Cape South Africa City - 99 km

see full list

Critical infrastructure

Airports, ports, nuclear plants and hydrodams at risk, if affected, are listed below.

Airports

Name IATA Code Elevation (m) Usage Runway type IFR Runway Length (ft) Distance
Worcester 199 Priv. Unpaved No 5200 37 km
Somersveld 79 0 63 km
D F Malan CPT 46 Civ. Paved Yes 10500 74 km
Ysterplaat XYS 16 Mil. Paved No 5200 76 km
Robertson ROD 195 Civ. Paved No 4900 83 km

Ports

Name LOCODE Country Distance
Cape Town ZACPT South Africa 79 km

Dams

Reservoir Dam Name River Year Distance
Voelvlei Vogelvlei 1977 15 km
Ceres Koekedou 1981 18 km
Ottergat Koekedou 1972 24 km
Eselfontein Titus 1971 30 km
Brandvlei Holsloot 1983 42 km
Wemmershoek Wemmershoek 1984 42 km
Stettynskloof Stettynskloof 1984 44 km
Lakenvalley Sanddrifskloof 1974 45 km
Moordkuil Hoeks 1985 50 km
Solomons Temple Sandgat 1966 53 km
Waterfall Olifants 1971 56 km
Elands Kloof Elands 1974 57 km
Keerom Nuy 1981 57 km
Nuweberg Palmiet 1971 71 km
Threewaterskloof Sonderend 1980 71 km
Verkeerdevlei Donkies 1989 73 km
Inverdoorn Doorn n/a 73 km
Eikenhof Palmiet 1977 75 km
Palmietriver Palmiet 1952 81 km
Upper Steenbras Steenbras 1980 81 km
Kogelberg Palmiet 1984 83 km
Grootvlei Klein Dwars 1969 83 km
Steenbras Steenbras 1980 85 km
Somenrsfontein Palmiet 1964 85 km

Nuclear plants

Nuclear power plants

Site Type Name Country
Site-Koeberg Nuclear Power Plant Koeberg-1 South Africa
Site-Koeberg Nuclear Power Plant Koeberg-2 South Africa

More information

For a full list of available products related to this event, please refer to the GDACS Resources page.