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MX · Mexico · –

La Concordia fire, March 2024 La Concordia, Villa Corzo

Out · last detection 21 Apr 2024, 08:02 UTC

The fire started on 27 March 2024 in La Concordia, Mexico, and satellites saw it burning for 26 days. Copernicus’s global GWIS system rebuilt a burnt perimeter of 12,247 hectares from heat detections, spread across 2 municipalities. According to CONAFOR, the largest of the 3 recorded fires was detected on 27 March 2024 and declared extinguished on 23 April 2024.

It is the 2th largest in Chiapas since 2016 (of 246 with a page). Number 9 in Mexico in 2024, of 289.

Burnt area
12,247ha
GWIS perimeter (Copernicus)
Duration
26days
27 Mar 2024 – 21 Apr 2024
Municipalities hit
2
municipalities
Started on
27 Mar
2024
Heat detections
657
in a single hotspot: 95 MW
Danger at start
37
High · FWI index
Average daily power
161MW
detected power per day, on average

Where it burned

HOTSPOTS BY DAY 27 Mar21 Apr
21 Apr 2024

How it evolved, day by day

27 Mar 2024 · 40 MW · 7 28 Mar 2024 · 23 MW · 13 29 Mar 2024 · 51 MW · 12 30 Mar 2024 · 37 MW · 13 31 Mar 2024 · 377 MW · 59 1 Apr 2024 · 266 MW · 51 2 Apr 2024 · 211 MW · 27 3 Apr 2024 · 854 MW · 96 4 Apr 2024 · 10 MW · 2 5 Apr 2024 · 131 MW · 21 6 Apr 2024 · 198 MW · 59 7 Apr 2024 · 106 MW · 19 8 Apr 2024 · 63 MW · 19 9 Apr 2024 · 206 MW · 33 10 Apr 2024 · 293 MW · 19 11 Apr 2024 · 111 MW · 39 12 Apr 2024 · 47 MW · 16 13 Apr 2024 · 25 MW · 12 15 Apr 2024 · 21 MW · 12 16 Apr 2024 · 106 MW · 13 17 Apr 2024 · 101 MW · 27 18 Apr 2024 · 301 MW · 18 19 Apr 2024 · 317 MW · 41 20 Apr 2024 · 103 MW · 12 21 Apr 2024 · 27 MW · 17
27 Mar 3 Apr 11 Apr 17 Apr

Fire radiative power detected each day, in megawatts, and number of hotspots. The magenta bar marks the peak day.

The weather it burned in

35°high
57km/h · peak gust
18%lowest humidity

It had gone 5 days without rain (1 mm or more) when it started. Rain came after the fire: 2.3 mm on 22 Apr.

This area had burned before

30% of the perimeter overlaps earlier fires recorded since 2016: 856 ha in 2018, 2,075 ha in 2020, 1,968 ha in 2022, 179 ha in 2023. Part of it burned more than once, so the yearly figures add up to more than the 3,632 ha that had burned before.

How big is it?

10 km
It burned the equivalent of 7.7% of the area of London (122 km² against 1,583 km²).

London boundary: geoBoundaries · Office for National Statistics (Open Government Licence v3.0).

This compares size, not location: both shapes are at the same scale, north up, centred on each other.

What happened to each town

  1. La Concordia where it started
    12,212 ha reached on 27 Mar
    4.7 %
  2. 101 ha reached on 9 Apr
    0.0 %

Burnt area inside each municipality, from crossing the GWIS perimeter with administrative boundaries. The distance runs from the point marking the centre of each area to the nearest fire: staying a kilometre away does not mean it reached the houses.

People and buildings inside the perimeter

GHSL 2025
Built-up area6.7 ha
Residents≈ 350

Inside the perimeter there were about 6.7 hectares of built-up land and about 350 residents (GHSL 2025, satellite-based estimate).

This is an estimate on 100 m cells, made from satellite imagery and census data: it does not mean that homes burned or that anyone was harmed. The perimeter also contains land that never burned. The GHSL 2025 epoch is a projection made from 2020 and earlier data.

Source: Global Human Settlement Layer (GHS-BUILT-S and GHS-POP R2023A), European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC), © European Union, CC BY 4.0. Sum inside the perimeter computed by WorldFires. human-settlement.emergency.copernicus.eu

Official record

Complex of 3 fires according to CONAFOR

According to CONAFOR, 3 fires started inside this perimeter on these dates, totalling 10,035 ha (the satellite measured 12,247 ha).

CONAFOR records each fire that started at a different time or place separately; the satellite sees a single burned area, so this page groups them together. The numbers on the map show where each one started.

When each one burned

1 24 ha 2 8,755 ha 3 1,255 ha
26 Mar22 Apr
cause unknown or not published
  1. 1 Villa Corzo San Agustín/ Rincón Grande 26 March 2024 24 ha · extinguished on 27 March 2024 · cause: unknown
  2. 2 La Concordia Linda vista/ Arroyo negro 27 March 2024 8,755 ha · extinguished on 23 April 2024 · cause: unknown
  3. 3 La Concordia Carrizal/ Antena 16 April 2024 1,255 ha · extinguished on 21 April 2024 · cause: unknown

Total according to CONAFOR: 10,035 ha, 82 % of the 12,247 ha in the satellite perimeter.

CONAFOR (Comisión Nacional Forestal), estadística de incendios forestales en datos.gob.mx (CC BY 4.0). This is the agency’s consolidated statistic: it measures the area in its own way, which is why it can differ from the satellite.

The weather day by day

ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at the fire location, the standard reference for past weather, and the Canadian Fire Weather Index (the same system Copernicus uses), computed by WorldFires from that data. Days after the fire run until the first rain.

Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Climate Change Service (ERA5)

Day High Min. humidity Peak gust Rain Danger (FWI)
27 Mar 32.7 °C 18 % 37 km/h 0.0 mm High 37
28 Mar 28.3 °C 42 % 50 km/h 0.1 mm High 30
29 Mar 33.3 °C 24 % 32 km/h 0.0 mm High 30
30 Mar 32.5 °C 30 % 27 km/h 0.1 mm High 29
31 Mar 33.1 °C 28 % 40 km/h 0.3 mm High 35
1 Apr 31.1 °C 35 % 49 km/h 0.0 mm High 35
2 Apr 31.0 °C 35 % 57 km/h 0.0 mm High 37
3 Apr 31.4 °C 31 % 44 km/h 0.0 mm High 35
4 Apr 28.6 °C 42 % 26 km/h 2.0 mm Low 9
5 Apr 30.6 °C 37 % 28 km/h 0.4 mm Moderate 19
6 Apr 32.2 °C 32 % 30 km/h 0.0 mm High 26
7 Apr 32.9 °C 34 % 31 km/h 0.1 mm High 25
8 Apr 31.6 °C 38 % 37 km/h 0.5 mm High 27
9 Apr 31.7 °C 40 % 48 km/h 0.4 mm High 32
10 Apr 32.7 °C 27 % 49 km/h 0.0 mm High 34
11 Apr 30.1 °C 29 % 53 km/h 0.1 mm High 38
12 Apr 31.2 °C 31 % 54 km/h 0.0 mm High 38
13 Apr 30.6 °C 35 % 50 km/h 0.0 mm High 36
14 Apr 31.4 °C 33 % 42 km/h 0.0 mm High 33
15 Apr 34.8 °C 24 % 29 km/h 0.0 mm High 31
16 Apr 34.2 °C 30 % 35 km/h 0.0 mm High 36
17 Apr 33.4 °C 33 % 38 km/h 0.0 mm High 36
18 Apr 34.0 °C 32 % 34 km/h 0.0 mm High 35
19 Apr 33.2 °C 31 % 32 km/h 2.5 mm Moderate 15
20 Apr 30.9 °C 45 % 35 km/h 2.5 mm Low 8
21 Apr 31.3 °C 43 % 34 km/h 8.3 mm Very low 3
22 Apr after 30.3 °C 45 % 41 km/h 2.3 mm Low 6

Its twins: fires that started in the same weather

It started with an FWI of 37.1, a minimum humidity of 18% and 5 days without rain. Fires in the area that started in weather like this since 2016: 15.

FWI at the start 37.1
Minimum humidity 18 %
Days without rain 5
this fire chosen twins rest of the area
Almost identicalSimilar

Outlines of the closest twins

Villaflores fire, April 2016
1,931 ha 4 days FWI 37.4 Min. humidity 27 % 48 km away, in 2016

First rain (1 mm or more) after it ended: 1.4 mm on 5 May.

What happened to them

10 days
median duration
2,084 ha
median area
100 %
went past 1,000 ha
1.5 mm
rain at the end (median; 14 of 15 had it)

It was 5.9 times larger than the median of its twins and lasted 26 days, against 10 days.

None of its 15 twins burned more. The weather on the first day does not explain everything: the wind in the following days, the fuel and the firefighting also count. In 1 of 15, not even 1 mm fell in the ten days after the end: they went out without rain. In the rest, the first rainy day brought a median of 1.5 mm.

This is a bank of analogues: it shows what usually happens, not what will happen. With fewer than 15 twins we give no figures. How we calculate it

How it ended

2.3 mmfirst rain
22 Aprthe day after it ended
57km/h · max. gust

It was considered over on 21 Apr, and on 22 Apr 2.3 mm fell. We do not know whether the rain or the firefighters put it out. Twins with rain when they ended: 14 of 15, with a median of 1.5 mm.

Weather on this page: Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Climate Change Service (ERA5)

How a twin is chosen

  • Same area: fires that have already ended, less than 250 km from this one, since 2016.
  • Same start: we compare the FWI on the first day, the minimum humidity that day and the run of days without rain before it. The slider sets how much they may differ.
  • Only pages with final weather data (ERA5 reanalysis) calculated in the same way as this fire’s; agricultural and grass burns and pages with data under review are left out.
  • Fires burning at the same time as this one (a week before or after) are left out: they share the same spell of weather and do not count as a precedent.
  • They are sorted by similarity, and the outlines of the first five are drawn.

How we calculate it

Before and after, from space

Drag the line to compare the same ground before the fire and after it.

Before · 20 Mar 2024
After · 28 Apr 2024

If the day is cloudy, change the date: each satellite passes once a day. In false colour the burnt ground looks brown or red.

The smoke

CAMS · Copernicus

On 15 April 2024 the air beside the fire reached 64 µg/m³ of PM2.5. That day averaged 31: 2.0 times the WHO daily guideline (15).

PM2.5 peak64 µg/m³
Days over the guideline14 days
PM1092 µg/m³
Optical depth1.15
25 Mar1 Apr8 Apr15 Apr22 Apr
Good Fair Moderate Poor Very poor Extremely poor

Particles from the Copernicus CAMS model at the centre of the perimeter; these are not measurements in each town. The pale bar is the worst hour, the solid one the daily average.

Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS)

Detections table · 657Every satellite heat detection, one by one, with time, satellite, power and coordinates.
⬇ Download CSV Times in UTC. Each detection is a 375 m pixel: a large fire yields hundreds per pass.
Date and timeSatelliteFRP (MW)LatLon

Other fires nearby

All fires in Mexico

Frequently asked questions

How long did the La Concordia fire last?
GWIS (Copernicus) dates it between 27 March 2024 and 21 April 2024: 26 days between the first and last heat detection of the perimeter. According to CONAFOR, the largest of the 3 recorded fires was detected on 27 March 2024 and declared extinguished on 23 April 2024.
How much area did it burn?
The perimeter GWIS (Copernicus) rebuilt from heat detections is 12,247 hectares (122.5 km²). It is an estimate: official national figures may differ.
Which municipalities burned?
The fire entered 2 municipalities: La Concordia (12,212 ha, 4.7 %); Villa Corzo (101 ha, 0.0 %).
What was the weather like?
During the fire the temperature reached 34.8 °C, humidity dropped to 18 % and gusts hit 57 km/h. The fire danger index (FWI) reached 38, class High.
Where does this data come from?
From the GWIS (Copernicus) burnt perimeter, NASA FIRMS VIIRS hotspots and the administrative boundaries of Mexico (geoBoundaries). It is not an official report.
How did the fires that started in similar weather in this area end?
Fires less than 250 km away that started since 2016 with a similar FWI, humidity and dry spell: 15. Their median duration was 10 days and their median area 2,084 ha; 100 % went past 1,000 ha. None of its 15 twins burned more. The weather on the first day does not explain everything: the wind in the following days, the fuel and the firefighting also count. In 1 of 15, not even 1 mm fell in the ten days after the end: they went out without rain. In the rest, the first rainy day brought a median of 1.5 mm.

Where to verify it

A satellite detection is not an official report. Final figures and the fire’s status are published by each country’s emergency service.

Emergency number: 911 · Emergency number and official warnings

Satellite cross-check

History of this page Changes in area, dates, name, official record or merged pages, compared every night since 24 October 2026.

Does something look wrong on this page?

This page is built from satellite data and official records, and it sometimes gets things wrong: the wrong dates, the wrong town, two fires merged into one, or something that was not a wildfire at all. If you know this fire first-hand (you live nearby, saw it, fought it or reported on it), tell us what really happened and we will check it.

Report an error
What do you think is wrong?

We will only use your email to reply about this report. Privacy. This is not an emergency service: if there is a fire now, call 911.

How we know this
  • Perimeter: GWIS (Copernicus), rebuilt from heat detections rather than mapped on imagery.
  • Dates from the perimeter: the VIIRS detections inside it did not change them. 657 Suomi-NPP VIIRS detections on those dates.
  • Compared with CONAFOR: 10,035 official ha against 12,247 ha of perimeter; they agree within 25%.
  • Weather: Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis at the fire location, in cells of about 25 km.
  • Built-up area and population come from the JRC Global Human Settlement Layer (epoch 2025, 100 m cells), summed inside the perimeter: an estimate of what was there, not a damage count.

How we build fire pages: methodology

Where this data comes from

The perimeter comes from the Copernicus Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS), which rebuilds it from MODIS and VIIRS heat detections and publishes it under CC BY 4.0. It is not measured on imagery as in Europe, so it is an estimate. Heat detections come from the VIIRS sensors aboard Suomi-NPP and NOAA-20, distributed by NASA FIRMS at 375 m resolution. Municipal boundaries come from geoBoundaries ADM2 (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0)). The area per municipality is computed by WorldFires by crossing the perimeter with those boundaries, so it may differ from each country’s official figure.