Overall Green Forest fire in Zambia from 15 Aug 2026 00:00 UTC to 30 Aug 2026 00:00 UTC

GDACS is a cooperation framework between the United Nations, the European Commission and disaster managers worldwide to improve awareness, information exchange and coordination in the first phase after major sudden-onset disasters.

Forest Fire (37979 ha) in Zambia 15 Aug 2026

Event summary

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

GDACS ID	WF 1030967
Countries:	Zambia
Start Date - Last detection*:	15 Aug 2026 - 30 Aug 2026
Duration (days):	15
People affected:	3311 in the burned area
Burned area:	37979 ha
More Info:	Global Wildfire Information System

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

GDACS Score

For more info on GDACS score click here.

Detailed event map. European Union, 2026. 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.

23 Aug 07:19 23 Aug 15:22 24 Aug 15:32 25 Aug 08:42 25 Aug 15:38 26 Aug 16:04 27 Aug 15:50 27 Aug 19:54 28 Aug 16:00 29 Aug 15:53 30 Aug 04:02 30 Aug 16:13

Impact Timeline

ID	Score	Population Affected	Burned Area (ha)	Last Update	Source
1	0.5	1779	17018	23 Aug 2026 06:01	GWIS
2	0.5	1780	17307	23 Aug 2026 14:01	GWIS
3	0.5	2013	20386	24 Aug 2026 14:01	GWIS
4	0.5	2037	23553	25 Aug 2026 06:01	GWIS
5	0.5	2037	23609	25 Aug 2026 14:02	GWIS
6	0.5	2591	29832	26 Aug 2026 14:02	GWIS
7	0.5	2915	31594	27 Aug 2026 14:01	GWIS
8	0.5	2778	34333	27 Aug 2026 18:01	GWIS
9	0.5	2978	35414	28 Aug 2026 14:02	GWIS
10	0.5	3301	36784	29 Aug 2026 14:02	GWIS
11	0.5	3311	37959	30 Aug 2026 02:02	GWIS
12	0.5	3311	37979	30 Aug 2026 14:02	GWIS

Fires Joined

This event includes other close identified fires:

Exposed population

The forest fire happened in Zambia , Province of Northern (population 974,374) .

Radius	Population
10 km	18000 people
5 km	11000 people
2 km	6600 people
1 km	5700 people
Burned Area	3300 people

Affected Provinces

Region Province	Country	Population
Northern	Zambia	970000 people
Luapula	Zambia	590000 people

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
Luwingu		1417				0	43 km
Kawambwa		1414	Civ.	Unpaved	No	3600	83 km
Kasenga	KEC	959	Civ.	Unpaved	No	3200	99 km
Samfya		1158	Civ.	Unpaved	No	3600	110 km
Mansa	MNS	1250	Civ.	Paved	Yes	5600	111 km

Ports

Dams

Nuclear plants

More information

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

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