Fires that started in strong wind in Namibia
Gusts of 50 km/h or more on the start day (a gale, Beaufort force 7).
The figure, 2016-2025
From 2016 to 2025, 6.8 % of the fires in Namibia started with gusts of 50 km/h or more and burned 5.3 % of the area.
The median fire burned about as much as the rest: 2,986 ha against 3,194 ha.
Based on all 953 fires in Namibia with a page between 2016 and 2025.
Fires and area by maximum gust on the start day
Share of fires (grey) and of burned area (colour) in each band. Where the coloured bar is taller, fires in that band were larger than average.
< 1 %
39 %
56 %
5.3 %
< 1 %
0.0 %
Shaded: the bands of the condition · km/h
Where
The 75 largest fires that started in this condition since 2016, 2026 included, scaled by area; in grey, the other fires with data. Tap a circle to see the fire.
Burned area by year
Hectares burned by fires with data, by band on their start day. Under each year, the share burned by those that started in this condition.
- < 20
- 20–35
- 35–50
- 50–65
- 65–80
- ≥ 80
* 2026: current year, provisional. Series not comparable from August 2025 onwards: GWIS changed its near-real-time perimeters.
›See the year-by-year table
| Year | Fires | With data | In the condition | hectares | % of the area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 provisional not comparable | 160 | 160 | 7 | 1,316,339 | 2.2 % |
| 2025 not comparable | 87 | 87 | 3 | 690,731 | 1.3 % |
| 2024 | 43 | 43 | 1 | 241,315 | 1.2 % |
| 2023 | 111 | 111 | 6 | 688,130 | 3.3 % |
| 2022 | 119 | 119 | 6 | 683,529 | 3.7 % |
| 2021 | 175 | 175 | 25 | 943,444 | 9.8 % |
| 2020 | 146 | 146 | 9 | 748,798 | 3.6 % |
| 2019 | 45 | 45 | 2 | 290,108 | 12 % |
| 2018 | 83 | 83 | 3 | 400,906 | 2.3 % |
| 2017 | 123 | 123 | 4 | 546,927 | 5.5 % |
| 2016 | 108 | 108 | 9 | 506,303 | 5.2 % |
In which months
Fires with data by start month, 2016 to 2025.
Today in Namibia
2 of the 14 regions of Namibia are in this condition today according to the forecast.
ECMWF IFS forecast for today at the centre of each region, computed by WorldFires on its own Open-Meteo server. Updated: 5 Nov 2026, 04:19 UTC.
- Hardap 56 km/h
- Karas 52 km/h
- Khomas 50 km/h
- Kunene 49 km/h
- Otjozondjupa 46 km/h
- Oshana 42 km/h
- Omusati 41 km/h
- Omaheke 36 km/h
›See all 14 regions
- Erongo35 km/h
- Zambezi34 km/h
- Ohangwena33 km/h
- Kavango East31 km/h
- Kavango West30 km/h
- Oshikoto27 km/h
This is not an official warning.
Check the warnings of your local civil protection or forestry authority.
The 20 largest that started this way
With the weather on their start day; in bold, the values that meet each condition.
| # | Fire | hectares | FWI | Gust | Min RH | No rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kapako fire, September 2019 26 September 2019 | 31,877 | — | 53 km/h | 20 % | 60 days |
| 2 | Rundu Rural West fire, 28 August 2017 28 August 2017 | 21,488 | — | 50 km/h | 13 % | 60 days |
| 3 | Omatako fire, 27 November 2021 27 November 2021 | 11,412 | — | 53 km/h | 9 % | 29 days |
| 4 | Rundu Rural West fire, August 2022 20 August 2022 | 8,428 | — | 50 km/h | 14 % | 60 days |
| 5 | Otjombinde fire, 19 September 2023 19 September 2023 | 7,634 | — | 51 km/h | 15 % | 60 days |
| 6 | Kamanjab fire, 17 September 2021 17 September 2021 | 6,369 | — | 50 km/h | 8 % | 60 days |
| 7 | Kamanjab fire, May 2021 22 May 2021 | 6,085 | — | 50 km/h | 21 % | 44 days |
| 8 | Okahao fire, 20 November 2021 20 November 2021 | 5,032 | — | 53 km/h | 8 % | 2 days |
| 9 | Mpungu fire, 8 October 2018 8 October 2018 | 4,693 | — | 52 km/h | 10 % | 11 days |
| 10 | Omuthiyagwiipundi fire, 15 October 2020 15 October 2020 | 4,546 | — | 53 km/h | 9 % | 60 days |
| 11 | Tsumkwe fire, 8 October 2022 8 October 2022 | 4,442 | — | 51 km/h | 9 % | 60 days |
| 12 | Kamanjab fire, 30 July 2021 30 July 2021 | 4,234 | — | 62 km/h | 14 % | 60 days |
| 13 | Kahenge fire, 8 September 2020 8 September 2020 | 4,234 | — | 52 km/h | 11 % | 60 days |
| 14 | Windhoek Rural fire, 27 November 2021 27 November 2021 | 4,223 | — | 53 km/h | 9 % | 29 days |
| 15 | Kamanjab fire, 30 July 2021 30 July 2021 | 4,173 | — | 67 km/h | 16 % | 60 days |
| 16 | Mariental Rural fire, 1 September 2021 1 September 2021 | 4,141 | — | 51 km/h | 4 % | 60 days |
| 17 | Mukwe fire, 28 August 2021 28 August 2021 | 3,910 | — | 56 km/h | 21 % | 60 days |
| 18 | Mpungu fire, 11 September 2016 11 September 2016 | 3,812 | — | 50 km/h | 8 % | 60 days |
| 19 | Kamanjab fire, June 2022 1 June 2022 | 3,637 | — | 65 km/h | 8 % | 48 days |
| 20 | Rundu Rural West fire, October 2016 15 October 2016 | 3,599 | — | 55 km/h | 7 % | 60 days |
How it is calculated
Every fire with a page and a published area since 2016 is classified by the weather on its start day at its central point, from the Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis on our own Open-Meteo server.
The same fires count as in the country totals: no agricultural or reed-bed burns, provisional pages or erroneous data. The quotable figures are for complete years; the current year is shown separately.
The gust is the daily maximum at 10 m from the ERA5 reanalysis, a grid of about 30 km that smooths out gusts in valleys and on ridges. It is the weather at one point, not on every hectare, and no single condition explains a fire.
Suggested citation
WorldFires, “Fires that started in strong wind in Namibia”, https://worldfires.org/en/country/namibia/fire-weather/strong-wind (accessed 5 November 2026). Sources: Copernicus Climate Change Service, ERA5 (Open-Meteo.com, CC BY 4.0), WorldFires (FWI, Van Wagner 1987), Copernicus GWIS, NASA FIRMS (VIIRS), ECMWF IFS (Open-Meteo.com, CC BY 4.0).
CC BY 4.0 licence: you may reproduce these figures crediting “WorldFires (worldfires.org)” and the sources.
Sources: Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Climate Change Service, ERA5 (Open-Meteo.com, CC BY 4.0) · WorldFires (FWI, Van Wagner 1987) · Copernicus GWIS · NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) · ECMWF IFS (Open-Meteo.com, CC BY 4.0)
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