The Greater Overberg Fire Protection Agency of South Africa has reported that a lightning strike started a wildfire on February 24, 2017 near the De Hoop Nature Reserve. The area on fire has grown to 10,000 ha (24,710 acres). The Overberg fire has been driven by high wind, dense vegetation and difficult terrain. Smoke from the fire continues to be a problem in the area.
This natural-color satellite image was collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite on February 26, 2017. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS’s thermal bands, are outlined in red. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team. Caption: NASA/Goddard, Lynn Jenner with information from the Greater Overberg FPA Facebook page.