The European Union (EU) is facing one of the most severe forest fires in history, with the area burned down from mid-June to now reaching more than 500,000 hectares.
According to data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), more than 1,000 large fires (over 30ha) occurred from June 18 to September 2. The total affected area is significantly higher than the 20-year average.
Notably, 4 of the 15 largest-scale fires in the EU in the last 10 years occurred this summer. In just one week, from July 16-22, nearly 19,000 hectares of forest were burned down, the highest level in a 7-day period since 2006.
On July 22, the "fire enemy" broke out in Avila province, near Madrid, Spain, burning more than 42,000 hectares. Thousands of people had to evacuate. The Spanish government assessed this as the most serious forest fire disaster in the country's modern history.
In the Andalusia region, southern Spain, a fire in July killed more than 10 people. Also on July 22, the fire spread in the Gironde region, near Bordeaux, France, burning down about 37,000 hectares of forest.
In August, the Spanish province of Huelva continued to suffer a major fire, destroying nearly 44,000 hectares. This is the 6th largest fire ever recorded in Europe.
The situation became particularly serious in France and Spain. France broke the record for the total area of land burned in a year just before the end of July. Spain has also repeatedly approached the record for the affected area at the same time of the year.
In Southern Europe, Greece, Portugal and Italy are experiencing severe forest fires. Belgium is also suffering its worst fire in more than a century in August. Thousands of hectares in the east of the country were burned down, causing the total area of land burned in the year to exceed the record since 2006.
Consecutive heat waves - driven by climate change - have exacerbated droughts and increased fire risks. More than 30,000 people are believed to have died from high temperatures, while hundreds of thousands have been evacuated, mainly in Spain and France.
Extreme heat also caused "fire seas" due to forest fires to appear in areas with inherently cool and humid climates such as Belgium and Scotland.
