The 2026 fire season in Europe has become one of the most difficult in terms of the geographical spread of fires and the scale of their consequences, with Ukraine ranking among the continent’s most affected countries, the Experts Club information and analytical center reports, citing data from the Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS), the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) and other European bodies.
As of August 31, the area affected by fire in Ukraine was estimated by GWIS at 413.1 thousand hectares, or about 0.69% of the country’s territory. If the Russian Federation is not included in the direct comparison, as the system also takes into account the vast territories of Siberia and the Far East, Ukraine ranks first among the countries of geographical Europe in terms of the absolute area affected by fires.
It is followed by Spain — 242.1 thousand hectares, Italy — 118.3 thousand hectares, France — 105.1 thousand hectares, and Portugal — 60.5 thousand hectares.
In Ukraine, fire statistics have an additional specific feature due to the war. Satellite systems record the territory affected by fire but do not determine its cause. Therefore, alongside heat, drought, careless handling of fire and arson, shelling, explosions and fires along the front line may also play a significant role.
The greatest burden relative to the size of the territory is recorded in the Balkans. In Montenegro, about 1.7% of the country’s territory has been affected by fire, in Bosnia and Herzegovina — more than 1%, and in North Macedonia — about 0.75%. Altogether, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Albania and Serbia have about 142 thousand hectares of burned areas.
A separate feature of the season has been a sharp increase in fire activity in countries where large fires are traditionally less common. In Belgium, the area affected by fires has already exceeded the average for 2012–2025 by more than ten times, in the Netherlands — by approximately three times, in Austria — by 2.5 times, and in France — by almost 2.5 times.
In the EU itself, by August 30, 636.1 thousand hectares of burned areas had been recorded within 1,861 major fires. This is 36% less than in the record year of 2025, but more than twice the long-term average for the same period.
