Spain is currently battling 20 major wildfires as a strong heatwave shows no signs of abating.
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Prolonged heatwaves and drought conditions are turning many European regions into tinderboxes, with Spain and Portugal among the hardest-hit countries.
While not unusual, wildfires in Europe are being supercharged by extremely hot and dry weather, which creates the perfect conditions for fires to form and spread rapidly.
According to data published on August 13 by the European Forest Fire Information (EFFIS) System, 439,568 hectares have already burned in EU countries since the start of 2025 – an area larger than Luxembourg. It is much higher than the 188,643 hectares affected during the same 8-month period last year and more than double the average for this time over the past 19 years (2006-2024), which stood at 218,417 hectares.
This puts Europe on track for its worst wildfire season on record.
Spain, Portugal Hit Hard
Spain is currently battling 20 major wildfires as a heatwave affecting the country shows no signs of abating. Authorities deployed 1,900 soldiers to battle the fires, 12 of which are affecting the northwestern region of Galicia. Temperatures exceeded 44C in several parts of the country this weekend as authorities warned of a very high risk of fires across “practically the entire country.”
“There are still some challenging days ahead, and unfortunately, the weather is not on our side,” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said at a news conference on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported.
Neighboring Portugal deployed more than 5,000 firefighters as wildfires swept through northern and central regions. The burnt forest area in the country this year is already 17 times higher than in 2024.
Meanwhile, French authorities deployed over 2,100 firefighters to contain a devastating wildfire – the country’s largest wildfire since 1949 – in the southern Aude region last week.
Wildfires are also affecting Greece, Italy, Turkey and the Balkans.
Between January and now, European wildfires generated 14.11 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, compared to 9.59 million tonnes during the same period in 2024, according to EFFIS data.
Featured image: EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid/Flickr.
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