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Human activity causes most of the wildfires breaking out across Europe, but their spread, speed and intensity are strongly affected by the warmer, drier conditions associated with climate change as well as with changing land use.<\/p>\n
More than 600,000 hectares of land have burned within European Union countries in the first eight months of 2026, according to the European Forest Fire Information System.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s below the area recorded by the same date in 2025 (the worst year on record), but it far exceeds the 20-year average of around 280,000 hectares, and preparing for wildfires is key, UN agencies say.<\/p>\n
While most fires have occured in historically fire-prone countries such as France and Spain, extremely dry conditions are putting many areas in Western and Central Europe, including the UK and southern Scandinavia, at increased risk.<\/p>\n
In the immediate future, wildfire risks may be compounded by the developing El Ni\u00f1o, a recurrent natural climate phenomenon, which can further influence temperatures and rainfall patterns and increase the likelihood of climate extremes.<\/p>\n
Many countries with a history of wildfires are now experiencing more frequent and larger blazes, over longer periods. At the same time, other countries in traditionally cooler or wetter areas are also preparing for the prospect of dealing with more wildfires.<\/p>\n
A wildfire took hold in the Cairngorms mountains of Scotland in mid-July. The area has experienced wildfires before, but due to this year\u2019s exceptionally dry conditions, the fire penetrated the dry peat layer, causing hotspots and flare-ups that resisted containment.<\/p>\n
More than 500 firefighters fought the blazes, with aerial support to put out fires \u2013 while bulldozers were called in to dig firebreaks.<\/p>\n
High winds pushed the unpredictable blaze towards the village of Nethy Bridge.<\/p>\n
Nine days on from the outbreak, Police Scotland declared a major incident and many of Nethy Bridge\u2019s 600 residents were evacuated, including James MacEwan, who described a worrying stretch of days without any rainfall amid the growing blaze.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were very fortunate that the wind remained from the west and took the fire towards the hills, otherwise we would have had a serious threat to property and possibly life,\u201d he said. \u201cThe downside was that this took the fire into relatively inaccessible terrain and made containing it extremely difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was over a month from the time that the fire started until the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service officially stood down firefighting crews.<\/p>\n