00:00Which EU country was hit the hardest by wildfires in 2024?
00:092024 was Europe's hottest year since records began in 1940. Hotter, drier conditions combined
00:16with more frequent droughts and heatwaves created highly flammable landscapes, particularly in
00:21southern and central Europe. Portugal recorded the largest burnt area in the EU, nearly 450
00:29square kilometers. Fires occurred early in the wildfire season on the island of Madeira and later
00:35around mid-September on the mainland. After Portugal, Bulgaria and Spain were the countries
00:41where flames consumed more land in 2024. It's not the first time Portugal has been hit the hardest
00:47by wildfires. The country also topped the EU in burned lands in 2017 and 2018. Although the 2025
00:55fire season isn't over yet, as of the 15th of July, the burned area is already three times higher
01:02than the same period last year, according to the Portuguese National Institute for Nature Conservation
01:07and Forests. Between 2000 and 2024, wildfires burned an average of 3,770 square kilometers of EU land a
01:17year. This accounts for an annual average of 10 percent of forests and 21 percent of grasslands
01:22being burned in the EU. It's estimated that wildfires cost the EU 2.5 billion euros every year.
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