File:Wildfires in Sicily (MODIS).jpg

English: Strong sirocco winds and high temperatures fanned the flames of an outbreak of wildfires on the island of Sicily in late September 2023. According to local media, schools were closed in Gratteri, a town in the Madonie Mountains near Palermo on September 22. Wildfires also threatened the coastal resort town of Cefalu as well as Messina and Trapani on that date, keeping fire fighters active. Two people were reported to have perished while trying to escape the fire near Cefalu.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of widespread wildfires on September 22. Each red “hot spot” marks an area where wildfires were active. Heavy smoke poured from many of the blazes and stretched far to the northwest, carried by strong winds.

Most of the fires were lined up along the coastal forests, but some were also found inland on Sicily, as well as mainland Italy, to the east. The largest group of fires with the heaviest smoke are located near Cefalu. Moving to the west, the next group of hotspots and smoke lie near Palmero.