Spain & several other European countries at ‘high risk’ of wildfires this summer

Spain and several other European countries are at a ‘high risk’ of wide-spread wildfires this year as a result of drier weather, according to the EU’s Crisis Commissioner, Janez Lenarcic.

ABOVE-average spring temperatures have already resulted in wildfires in Spain, France, Portugal and Sweden. Drier weather in usually wet regions are “also at higher risk of wildfires this year,” which means that they are no longer limited to the “traditional hot spots,” stated Lenarcic at a news conference on Tuesday. “The areas that are prone to forest fires are no longer only in the southern parts of Europe, but also in central Europe, and even in the northern part of Europe, which are usually at less risk,” he added.

Lenarcic expects the situation will “get much worse over the summer,” predicting more than the average number of European wildfires this year between the months of June and September. “This fire season is expected to be above the 10-dozen-year average when it comes to the number of fires and areas burned in Europe,” he explained.

In fact, Spain’s Costa del Sol, has already experienced three wildfires in just one day at the weekend (on Sunday), as reported.