Greece, Italy and the countries of Central Europe will face an increased risk of forest fires in the coming weeks, said Maria Zuber, head of the EU Emergency Response Coordination Centre, on Wednesday.
She said that, due to the ongoing heatwave, the coming days in France would be “very challenging”, but that other countries should also prepare for potential disasters on the horizon.
“The next threat is already looming over Greece, as well as Central Europe,” Zuber told reporters, as quoted by Reuters.
“Greece has so far escaped this, but we can now see that the threat will spread to it as well. Italy will face the risk in early August, and we will need to see what happens on the Iberian Peninsula, because if the fires spread there too, the whole of Europe will be ablaze,” she added.
This forecast is based on weather conditions that favour the outbreak and rapid spread of fires, such as high temperatures, dry air, wind and a lack of rain. Climate change is exacerbating hot and dry conditions, allowing forest fires to spread faster and burn for longer.
Last year, Europe experienced its worst wildfire season on record, during which more than a million hectares of land were burnt. Zuber noted that the wildfire situation in Europe this year is similar so far.
“There is a possibility that this will set yet another record,” she said.
The EU centre coordinates the deployment of aircraft and firefighters to countries requesting emergency assistance, using resources pooled by European countries and chartered by the EU. The centre has dispatched seven aircraft and four helicopters to France, as well as six aircraft and three ground-based forest fire-fighting teams to Spain.