Brazil: Fires ravage 1.3 mi hectares, surge again in Pantanal

The fire in Brazil's Pantanal region burned over 100,000 hectares in just 24 hours, impacting 8.7 percent of the biome. Since the start of 2024, fires have affected more than 1.3 million hectares, according to data from the Environmental Satellite Applications Laboratory at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (Lasa-UFRJ).

The institution has issued a meteorological fire danger alert for the Upper Paraguay River Basin through August 10. On Tuesday (Aug. 6), most of the region was classified at extreme risk, with conditions that could lead to major fires that are “difficult to combat even with aerial resources and are expected to spread rapidly,” the note points out.

Since early August, social media has been flooded with images of a sky reddened by fire, or grayed by smoke, flames encroaching on the BR-262 highway, and charred jaguar cubs, all captured in Mato Grosso do Sul state.

The latest bulletin from the state government on fire monitoring and suppression operations reports six active fires and two areas under surveillance.

One of the outbreaks, which originated in Nhecolândia—a sub-region of the Pantanal, in the municipality of Corumbá, Mato Grosso do Sul—has become a focal point for firefighting efforts, due to the speed of expansion caused by the intense gusts of wind in the region. The bulletin highlights that “the situation is particularly critical in the Negro River State Park and nearby riverside areas, which are threatened by the spread of fire.”

Task force

Since the fires in the Pantanal intensified three months ago, a task force of approximately 400 firefighters and agents from federal and state governments has been deployed to the region. The team is supported by 23 aircraft, seven trucks, six boats, and 44 pickup trucks in their efforts to combat the blazes.