Spain is the European Union country with the largest amount of burned land so far this year, exceeding 120,000 hectares, according to updated data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). It is followed at a distance by Italy (with 48,000 hectares) and France (with 46,000 hectares).
Provisional data from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (Miteco) indicated that, up until July 12, fires had scorched just over 60,000 hectares, which already represented three times the figure for the same period last year.
However, the burned area has skyrocketed in recent weeks. Between July 9 and July 15, 23,249 hectares were burned, and between July 16 and July 22, up to 43,337 hectares have been burned—the worst figure of 2026 for the country. This surge is mainly driven by the La Mierla fire (Guadalajara), which has destroyed more than 32,000 hectares, although it is now entering the stabilization phase.
In addition to La Mierla, other fires that have contributed to the burned area include the Cinco Villas fire in Zaragoza, now extinguished, which burned over 15,000 hectares. Also, the Los Gallardos fire (Almería), with around 7,000 hectares burned and in which 13 people lost their lives. Furthermore, several fires remain active, such as those in Brieva (Segovia), Selas (Guadalajara), Ejulve (Teruel), and El Cerro de Andévalo (Huelva).
According to experts, persistent heatwaves combined with a lack of forest maintenance create an explosive mix that already led to 393,079 hectares burning in Spain in 2025—accounting for 38% of all burned land across the EU, which totaled 1,033,966 hectares.
