Weather tracker: Why Europeâs wildfires are proving so fierce and difficult to stop | TheBriefWire
Weather tracker: Why Europeâs wildfires are proving so fierce and difficult to stop
Published 27 July 2026 ¡ europe
Wind and record-breaking heat are fuelling the continentâs explosive fire season, with Spain and France among worst hit Explainer: what is a âfire cloudâ, and
Wind and record-breaking heat are fuelling the continentâs explosive fire season, with Spain and France among worst hit Explainer: what is a âfire cloudâ, and how have they worsened wildfires in Europe?
A combination of an unusually wet winter, very low rainfall since spring and repeated record-breaking summer heatwaves is likely to explain why wildfires have ignited, spread and resisted control so readily across France and Spain in recent days.
About 90% of wildfires are started by human activity, typically igniting âfine fuelsâ such as vegetation grass, pine needles, litter and twigs. And recent weather has almost certainly made ignition far easier.
Drought in western Europe has turned this vegetation â which normally dries after only a few hours of heat and low rainfall â into tinder. Continue reading...
Published: July 27, 2026 ⢠12:51 PM IST ¡ Updated: July 27, 2026 ⢠1:08 PM ISTBy TheBriefWire Editorial Team
Key points
Wind and record-breaking heat are fuelling the continentâs explosive fire season, with Spain and France among worst hit Explainer: what is a âfire cloudâ, and how have they worsened wildfires in Europe?
A combination of an unusually wet winter, very low rainfall since spring and repeated record-breaking summer heatwaves is likely to explain why wildfires have ignited, spread and resisted control so readily across France and Spain in recent days.
About 90% of wildfires are started by human activity, typically igniting âfine fuelsâ such as vegetation grass, pine needles, litter and twigs.
And recent weather has almost certainly made ignition far easier.
Drought in western Europe has turned this vegetation â which normally dries after only a few hours of heat and low rainfall â into tinder.
The BriefWire