KE · Countries

Wildfires in Kenya

349 fires over 1,000 hectares with a perimeter estimated by GWIS since 2016, adding up to 771,547 hectares burned across 81 constituencies.

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.

The season, week by week

Copernicus GWIS

Kenya, at this point in the year: 107,167 hectares, below the 2012–2025 average of 278,767.

2026 average 2012–2025 lowest and highest

2012–2026

Yearly average 2016–2025241,561 ha

Worst year2020 432,928 ha

With a page here349 since 2016

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›See the year-by-year table

Year	Fires	hectares	Source
2026	428	107,167	GWIS
2025	692	268,797	GWIS
2024	631	211,049	GWIS
2023	480	131,139	GWIS
2022	510	131,986	GWIS
2021	1,122	373,553	GWIS
2020	1,157	432,928	GWIS
2019	1,054	334,357	GWIS
2018	543	126,143	GWIS
2017	659	161,587	GWIS
2016	886	244,073	GWIS
2015	1,317	366,728	GWIS
2014	871	254,850	GWIS
2013	1,053	384,195	GWIS
2012	1,721	751,980	GWIS

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

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Σ	Largest of the year
2026	12k	5k	1k	5k		21k	1k	3k	38k	8k			94,318	Cental Imenti 9,979 ha
2025	37k	31k	9k			2k		3k	40k	11k	7k	6k	143,713	Isiolo South 28,977 ha
2024		2k	4k		3k	1k	2k		8k	9k		5k	34,856	Kibwezi East 3,873 ha
2023		16k	4k			1k		5k	1k				27,672	Kieni 5,107 ha
2022	2k		15k	2k		2k	1k		1k	2k			25,013	Cental Imenti 11,387 ha
2021	74k	30k	17k	2k	1k	1k	5k	1k	2k	1k			135,053	Turkana West 15,183 ha
2020	13k	2k	8k	1k	14k	9k	15k	22k	10k	22k	3k	10k	127,551	Galole 11,626 ha
2019	11k	45k	18k	5k	1k	12k	4k		2k				97,123	South Imenti 8,531 ha
2018	5k						2k		4k	4k			15,851	Kilgoris 2,215 ha
2017	10k	6k	4k				2k			1k			23,577	Kieni 7,430 ha
2016		7k	5k	1k		5k	5k	11k		8k	3k	2k	46,820	Isiolo North 3,529 ha