STORY: ::Fires in Brazil’s wetlands have surged nearly tenfold this year to the highest levels since 2020

::The figures have raised alarm as the region heads into the riskiest season for wildfires

::Corumba, Brazil

:: June 9, 2024

The blaze, a result of weak rains since late last year which have disrupted the usual seasonal flooding and left more of the region vulnerable to fires, started earlier in June and have surged nearly tenfold so far this year to the highest levels since 2020, when the biome suffered its worst blazes on record.

Satellite data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE) showed a 980% increase in the number of fires in the Pantanal through June 5, compared with the same period of last year. The figures have raised alarms as the region heads into the riskiest season for wildfires, which usually starts in July and peaks in August and September.

World Wildlife Foundation Brazil expressed concerns that the ongoing fires could mirror those of 2020, when, according to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, 16% of the entire Brazilian Pantanal was incinerated. The Pantanal wetlands is roughly 10 times the size of the Florida everglades and are home to jaguars, tapirs, caimans, anacondas and giant anteaters.