While peak fire season is not yet over, the preliminary number of fires in the European Union is rising since January, with already more than 660,000 hectares burned, reaching a level not seen at this time of year since satellite data began to be used in 2006
If the area hardest hit by the blazes is the Iberian Peninsula, with more than 246,000 hectares devastated, mainly in Galicia in the northwest, central Europe, which has so far been relatively spared, has endured a scorching summer. Firefighters needed more than ten days in July to bring the largest fire in Slovenia’s recent history under control.
Deadly storms, heat waves in the sea, collapsing glaciers… Beyond the fires and the borders of the European Union, the entire Mediterranean region was hit by extreme climatic phenomena this summer. And if climate change does not explain all these manifestations, it is clearly in question when it comes to the heat waves that are multiplying even at sea.
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers Climate disasters on the coasts of the Mediterranean, consequences of accelerated warming of the sea