Wildfires burn 659,541 hectares of land across Europe this year

Heavy summer and continuous heatwaves have reportedly caused massive damage in Europe this year. According to a report released by the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), forest fires have burned 659,541 hectares of land in Europe so far this year. Countries like Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, France, Croatia and Austria were affected the most by wildfires.

Spain has been the worst hit by wildfires. 244,924 hectares of land burned in Spain. The EFFIS report is based on satellite data from the European Union’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS).

The CAMS report said that this was the year with the highest number of wildfires reported in the East-West regions of Europe, and that most of Western Europe was under threat of wildfires.

EFFIS coordinator Jesús San-Miguel said that drought and high temperatures have affected all of Europe, and the overall situation in the region is worrying. He said “we are still in the middle of the fire season”.

He said that historically, fire seasons in the EU have been mainly driven by countries in the Mediterranean region, but since 2010, fires have been blazing in central and northern countries that do not normally experience fires on their territory.