File:Fires in Hispaniola (MODIS 2015-05-12).jpg

English: A wildfire first spotted at Valle Nuevo National Park in the Dominican Republic on April 28, 2015 spread over the next twenty-four hours, threatening the highland city of Constanza and forcing people to flee from the heavy smoke. By April 29, the blaze had burned 10 kilometers and the Santiago province was inundated with ash raining down. Air quality in the city had degraded forcing those with respiratory problems to leave. Additional red hotspots, marking fire activity, are scattered across the island.

Valle Nuevo National Park is located just 15 kilometers south of Constanza, which, at 1,100 meters above sea level is the Dominican Republic's highest city. The park is approximately 910 square kilometers and borders several provinces.

On April 30, the Environment Minister, Bautista Rojas said the recent forest fires in various areas of the country are more than 70% control. In particular, the brushfires near the towns Constanza, Restauracion, Barahona, Dajabon and Ocoa were expected to be completely doused shortly. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on April 29, 2015, just one day after the Constanza fire was spotted. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS�s thermal bands, are outlined in red and accompanied by smoke.