Overall Green Forest fire in Ghana from 23 Jan 2026 00:00 UTC to 01 Feb 2026 00:00 UTC

GDACS is a cooperation framework between the United Nations, the European Commission and disaster managers worldwide to improve awareness, information exchange and coordination in the first phase after major sudden-onset disasters.

Forest Fire (10483 ha) in Ghana 23 Jan 2026

Event summary

This forest fire is expected to have a low humanitarian impact based on the burned area and the affected population and their vulnerability.

GDACS ID	WF 1027187
Countries:	Ghana
Start Date - Last detection*:	23 Jan 2026 - 01 Feb 2026
Duration (days):	9
People affected:	9 in the burned area
Burned area:	10483 ha
More Info:	Global Wildfire Information System

*(Last detection of the thermal anomaly of the fire)

GDACS Score

For more info on GDACS score click here.

Detailed event map. European Union, 2026. Map produced by EC-JRC.
The boundaries and the names shown on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the European Union.

26 Jan 20:01 27 Jan 04:01 27 Jan 08:01 27 Jan 16:02 28 Jan 00:02 28 Jan 12:02 28 Jan 16:02 29 Jan 04:02 29 Jan 16:04 30 Jan 00:04 30 Jan 12:04 30 Jan 16:03 31 Jan 04:04 31 Jan 16:04 01 Feb 16:05 07 Feb 20:11

Impact Timeline

ID	Score	Population Affected	Burned Area (ha)	Last Update	Source
1	0.5	3	5487	26 Jan 2026 19:00	GWIS
2	0.5	3	5526	27 Jan 2026 03:00	GWIS
3	0.5	5	6008	27 Jan 2026 07:00	GWIS
4	0.5	7	6223	27 Jan 2026 15:00	GWIS
5	0.5	8	7414	27 Jan 2026 23:00	GWIS
6	0.5	8	7807	28 Jan 2026 11:00	GWIS
7	0.5	8	8053	28 Jan 2026 15:00	GWIS
8	0.5	8	8821	29 Jan 2026 03:00	GWIS
9	0.5	8	9231	29 Jan 2026 15:00	GWIS
10	0.5	8	9664	29 Jan 2026 23:00	GWIS
11	0.5	8	9794	30 Jan 2026 11:00	GWIS
12	0.5	8	9793	30 Jan 2026 15:00	GWIS
13	0.5	8	10055	31 Jan 2026 03:00	GWIS
14	0.5	8	10127	31 Jan 2026 15:00	GWIS
15	0.5	8	10268	01 Feb 2026 15:00	GWIS
16	0.5	9	10483	07 Feb 2026 19:00	GWIS

Fires Joined

This event includes other close identified fires:

Exposed population

The forest fire happened in Ghana , Region of Northern (population 1,590,580) . The nearest places are Damongo, Savelugu, and Tamale.

Radius	Population
10 km	11000 people
5 km	<1000 people
2 km	<1000 people
1 km	<1000 people
Burned Area	<1000 people

Affected Provinces

Region Province	Country	Population
Northern	Ghana	1.6 million people
Upper West	Ghana	600000 people

Affected populated places

Name	Region Province	Country	City class	Population	Distance
Damongo	Northern	Ghana	City	-	73 km
Savelugu	Northern	Ghana	City	29000 people	77 km
Tamale	Northern	Ghana	City	360000 people	81 km

see full list

Critical infrastructure

Airports, ports, nuclear plants and hydrodams at risk, if affected, are listed below.

Airports

Name	IATA Code	Elevation (m)	Usage	Runway type	IFR	Runway Length (ft)	Distance
Tamale Old		183				0	76 km
Tamale	TML	169	Civ.	Paved	Yes	7900	76 km

Ports

Dams

Reservoir	Dam Name	River	Year	Distance
	Bontanga		n/a	56 km

Nuclear plants

More information

For a full list of available products related to this event, please refer to the GDACS Resources page.

Disclaimer
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