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Climate change made heat and dryness that fueled Iberian wildfires 40 times more likely, study finds
Wildfires in Spain and Portugal killed eight people, forced 35,000 evacuations, and burned 640,000 hectares, fueled by climate change making conditions 40 times more frequent and 30% more intense.
- Intensified drought and rising temperatures are creating conditions for more frequent, intense, and widespread wildfires across Europe and globally.
- The recent heatwave in Spain that fueled wildfires was 200 times more likely and 3 degrees Celsius hotter due to climate change.
- Experts stressed the urgency of stopping burning fossil fuels to prevent catastrophic wildfires as temperatures continue to rise.
80 Articles
80 Articles
The Iberian peninsula has been marked by particularly high temperatures this year and large-scale fires: 330,000 hectares burned in about 15 days in Spain, mainly in the west. Portugal has seen 280,000 hectares go in smoke since the beginning of the year. According to a study published by the World Weather Attribution, climate change has increased the risk of heat waves like those that favored fires in August by 40.
Weather that drove Iberian wildfires is 40 times more likely due to climate change, report says
The hot, dry and windy conditions this summer that fueled the worst wildfires in Spain for at least three decades are 40 times more likely to recur due to human-caused climate change, according to an analysis by World Weather Attribution.
Human-induced climate change has increased the risk of heat waves by 40 times, such as the one that led to deadly fires in Spain and Portugal last August, according to scientists.
Climate change makes heat waves, which lead to intense forest fires such as this year in Portugal and Spain, about 40 times more likely and 30 percent more intense, researchers say.
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