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Wildfires in Republic of the Congo

1,075 fires over 1,000 hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS since 2016, adding up to 1,763,061 hectares burned across 34 districts.

Only fires of 1,000 ha or more get an entry: smaller ones are not in the lists or the entry totals, but they are in the GWIS yearly series.

What is burning in Republic of the Congo today · 1 ›

Key facts

Figures computed on 29 October 2026 from the WorldFires database; each sentence names its source. Reusable under CC BY 4.0 with credit to WorldFires.

How the season is going · week 43

Copernicus GWIS · provisional
64 % against the 2012–2025 average

Republic of the Congo is running below the usual for this point in the year, at 64 % of the average: 1,055,423 hectares burned up to week 43, against an average of 1,644,692 in 2012–2025 (Copernicus GWIS). No year between 2012 and 2025 had burned this little by now.

2026
1,055,423 ha
average
1,644,692 ha
minimum
1,244,284 ha
maximum
2,001,855 ha

GWIS estimates for the current year are provisional and may change.

The season, week by week

Copernicus GWIS
0 1,009k 2,019k Jan Apr Jul Oct Dec
2026 average 2012–2025 lowest and highest

The GWIS yearly series

2012–2026
Yearly average 2016–20251,619,984 ha
Worst year2016 1,919,901 ha
With a page here1,075 since 2016
121314151617181920212223242526
›See the year-by-year table
Year Fires hectares Source
20263,782 1,055,423 GWIS
20254,138 1,260,535 GWIS
20245,705 1,868,249 GWIS
20234,774 1,395,171 GWIS
20226,230 1,815,655 GWIS
20214,963 1,395,388 GWIS
20205,830 1,740,323 GWIS
20195,310 1,571,515 GWIS
20185,944 1,719,914 GWIS
20175,022 1,513,189 GWIS
20166,139 1,919,901 GWIS
20156,103 1,828,266 GWIS
20145,209 1,560,845 GWIS
20136,618 2,018,848 GWIS
20125,638 1,743,076 GWIS

National estimates from Copernicus GWIS, rebuilt from heat detections since 2012.

Fire calendar

The peak usually comes in week 31 (around 2 August): that is the median of the week with the most burned area in each year since 2016.

Each cell is one week; the colour shows the area of the fires on record that started that week, in quartiles for this country. Tap a cell for details.

Hectares per week: no fires < 1,6071,607–3,6763,676–11,273≥ 11,273

When it burned: year by year, month by month

Hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS by the fire’s starting month, and the largest fire of each year.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecΣLargest of the year
2026
1k
3k
11k
3k
6k
136k
239k
88k
164k
1k
 652,220 Divénié 19,735 ha
2025
2k
24k
65k
44k
8k
 142,719 Madingo-Kayes 5,828 ha
2024
5k
5k
4k
2k
13k
80k
49k
2k
 160,862 Mvouti 16,420 ha
2023
2k
2k
2k
36k
13k
1k
 55,987 Sibiti 2,563 ha
2022
3k
1k
21k
33k
44k
7k
 110,148 Mvouti 3,280 ha
2021
3k
4k
2k
16k
33k
12k
 68,655 Mvouti 3,126 ha
2020
3k
2k
8k
1k
41k
63k
4k
 121,490 Okoyo 5,532 ha
2019
1k
1k
39k
16k
16k
11k
 85,421 Mvouti 4,725 ha
2018
4k
12k
16k
47k
7k
 85,401 Impfondo 2,897 ha
2017
1k
3k
1k
68k
23k
8k
3k
 107,362 Kakamoéka 6,639 ha
2016
36k
3k
4k
15k
75k
30k
9k
 172,796 Mvouti 10,996 ha

Hectares burned per year

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

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Largest recorded fires

By region

  1. Pool 561,875 ha · 345
  2. Plateaux 474,044 ha · 315
  3. Bouenza 293,872 ha · 189
  4. Cuvette 148,907 ha · 105
  5. Lékoumou 92,244 ha · 62
  6. Niari 78,192 ha · 61
  7. Sangha 40,880 ha · 13
  8. Cuvette-Ouest 33,776 ha · 23
  9. Brazzaville 17,668 ha · 14
  10. Likouala 10,844 ha · 9
  11. Kouilou 1,849 ha · 1

Districts that have burned most often in Republic of the Congo

  1. 208×Mvouti11 years · 355,644 ha
  2. 188×Okoyo11 years · 264,191 ha
  3. 94×Impfondo11 years · 161,580 ha
  4. 77×Sibiti11 years · 117,165 ha
  5. 63×Madingo-Kayes11 years · 77,201 ha

Full ranking: by number of fires, area and share of the municipality →

Fires in 2026 · 360

See all 360 fires of 2026 →

Fires in 2025 · 88

See all 88 fires of 2025 →

Fires in 2024 · 103

See all 103 fires of 2024 →

Fires in 2023 · 40

See all 40 fires of 2023 →

Fires in 2022 · 69

See all 69 fires of 2022 →

Fires in 2021 · 50

See all 50 fires of 2021 →

Fires in 2020 · 75

See all 75 fires of 2020 →

Fires in 2019 · 59

See all 59 fires of 2019 →

Fires in 2018 · 62

See all 62 fires of 2018 →

Fires in 2017 · 71

See all 71 fires of 2017 →

Fires in 2016 · 98

See all 98 fires of 2016 →

Frequently asked questions

How much land burns in Republic of the Congo in an average year?
According to Copernicus GWIS estimates, an average of 1,619,984 hectares burn in Republic of the Congo each year (2016–2025 average).
What was the worst wildfire year in Republic of the Congo?
The worst year in Republic of the Congo since 2016 was 2016, with 1,919,901 hectares burned according to Copernicus GWIS.
What is the largest wildfire recorded in Republic of the Congo?
Largest fire recorded by WorldFires in Republic of the Congo since 2016: Divénié fire, 1 September 2026, with 19,735 hectares burned — perimeter rebuilt from heat detections (Copernicus GWIS).
When is wildfire season in Republic of the Congo?
In Republic of the Congo, 79% of the area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016 burned in July–September; the month with the most burned area: July.
How many wildfires has Republic of the Congo had in 2026?
Fires counted by Copernicus GWIS in Republic of the Congo so far in 2026 (up to week 43): 3,782, against an average of 5,406 per full year in 2016–2025. Republic of the Congo is running below the usual for this point in the year, at 64 % of the average: 1,055,423 hectares burned up to week 43, against an average of 1,644,692 in 2012–2025 (Copernicus GWIS). No year between 2012 and 2025 had burned this little by now.
Which regions of Republic of the Congo burn the most?
Regions of Republic of the Congo with the most area burned in fires with a WorldFires page since 2016: Pool (561,875 ha), Plateaux (474,044 ha), Bouenza (293,872 ha).