Extreme heat and drought fuel wildfires across 80 countries, scorching more than 370 million acres

AI digestMimile.ai EditorialAugust 17, 2026 at 05:00 AM

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Extreme heat and drought fuel wildfires across 80 countries, scorching more than 370 million acres

Extreme heat and drought have fueled wildfires that have scorched more than 370 million acres across 80 countries. Europe has lost over 550,000 hectares since the start of the year, with damage estimated at 15.6 billion to 19.1 billion euros. Chile has confirmed 21 deaths, while Canada estimates 4 to 6 million hectares burned.

Key Facts

More than 300,000 people were evacuated in Europe due to wildfires.
Ontario recorded its highest wildfire carbon emissions since 2003, with about 10,000 indigenous residents displaced.
Africa accounted for 46% of global wildfires since May, and Democratic Republic of Congo fire intensity averaged 12.1 megawatts.
Japan's Otsuchi fire was the second-largest in 40 years and burned 8% of the town.
Chile's wildfires have killed 21 people.

Europe's Wildfire Toll

Wildfires in Europe have destroyed more than 550,000 hectares since the start of 2026. Estimated damage ranges from 15.6 billion to 19.1 billion euros, and more than 300,000 people were evacuated. The UK recorded 1,017 wildfires over the summer, with Tintwistle Moor losing about 900 football fields. Adriana Ford, director of the Leverhulme Wildfires Centre, said Britain is not ready for fires on the scale seen in France and Spain.

Canada and California

Canada estimates 4 to 6 million hectares have burned, with Ontario recording its highest carbon emissions since 2003. About 10,000 people from indigenous communities were displaced in Canada. California had seen more than 4,000 wildfires by May, damaging about 250,000 acres. Theodore Keeping, a wildfire expert at Imperial College London, said no fire and emissions disaster of this scale had been seen in recent human history.

Africa, Asia and Chile

Africa accounted for 46% of global wildfires since May, with Democratic Republic of Congo fire intensity averaging 12.1 megawatts. Japan's Otsuchi fire was the second-largest in 40 years and burned 8% of the town. South Korea recorded temperatures of 42 degrees Celsius. Wildfires in Chile killed 21 people.

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Extreme heat and drought fuel wildfires across 80 countries, scorching more than 370 million acres

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TRT Haber

Environment

Forest fires in Greece and Spain kill three people

Forest fires in Greece and Spain have killed three people over the weekend of August 15–16. More than 570 people were evacuated from the Greek island of Salamis, where two fires burned near crowded beaches, and a soldier died fighting a blaze in Spain's Aragon region. Firefighters across Greece recorded 34 fires in 24 hours, while a fire in Belgium's High Fens nature reserve continued.

Environment

Europe wildfires burn 600,000 hectares in 2026, Spain worst hit

Wildfires have burned more than 600,000 hectares across Europe in 2026, according to the European Forest Fire Information System. Spain suffered the largest loss, with about 300,000 hectares burned, including a record fire in the Avila region. Nearly 400,000 people were evacuated in Spain and France alone.

Environment

Fast-moving wildfires leave too few seed trees for western North American forest recovery

Fast-moving wildfires across western North America are burning conifer forests so thoroughly that they leave too few surviving seed trees for natural recovery, according to a study published in Science Advances. Researchers from Colorado State University and Western Colorado University, with colleagues at UC Berkeley, the U.S. Forest Service and the Canadian Forest Service, analyzed nearly 3,500 wildfires from 2012 to 2023 and found that higher fire spread rates increased near-total tree mortality and widened the distance to surviving seed trees. The findings suggest many burned areas may shift to shrubland or grassland rather than returning to forest.

Environment

Algeria wildfires kill 12, injure 54 as heatwave fuels 154 blazes

At least 12 people died and 54 were injured as wildfires swept northeastern Algeria on Wednesday. Interior Minister Said Sayoud said 154 fires broke out in a single day, with six victims in critical condition. Dozens of families were evacuated from the hardest-hit areas.

Extreme heat and drought fuel wildfires across 80 countries, scorching more than 370 million acres

Key Facts

Europe's Wildfire Toll

Canada and California

Africa, Asia and Chile

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