Europe is facing hotter, drier summers and more intense wildfires. The period from June to August 2025 was the warmest ever on a global scale, with temperatures of 0.7°C above the 1991-2020 average.
Among the many serious consequences of rising temperatures is the increasing risk of wildfires. In 2025, the wildfire season was well above average, with a cumulative burnt area in the European Union of more than 1 million hectares. Europe’s wildfire seasons are increasingly marked by large-scale fires that threaten lives and devastate areas requiring long recovery periods.
That’s why the EU continues to invest heavily in prevention and preparedness programmes - to reduce risks and respond more quickly and effectively when emergencies occur.
5 ways the EU prepares for wildfires in 2026
1. Providing 24/7 emergency support
Any country affected by wildfires - within or outside the EU - can request firefighting assistance through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM). But how does it work?
- A wildfire occurs inside or outside the EU
- The affected country requests assistance via the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), the operational heart of the UCPM
- Member and participating states offer assistance, such as equipment or response teams
- The ERCC can also mobilise assistance from the EU strategic reserve – rescEU (aircraft and helicopters)
- The affected country accepts offers corresponding to their operational needs
- The ERCC coordinates and co-finances the delivery of assistance
- Assistance is delivered and the operation is closed
If voluntary offers are insufficient to meet the needs, the EU can also mobilise additional resources from the European Civil Protection Pool (ECPP) or from its own strategic reserve, rescEU, which remain on standby during high-risk months.
2. Putting a firefighting fleet and teams on standby
For the 2026 wildfire season, the EU is putting a dedicated rescEU fleet and teams on standby so they can move quickly to where they are needed most.
The 2026 rescEU fleet and the ECPP will include:
stationed in 12 countries: 11 EU UCPM Member States: Cyprus, Czechia, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Romania, Portugal, Sweden and Slovakia and 1 UCPM participating state: North Macedonia.
On the ground
In addition, 15 ground firefighting teams, 5 ground firefighting teams with vehicles and 1 advisory and assessment team - will be available to intervene across Europe.
3. Strategically prepositioning firefighters in key locations
Launched in 2022 as a pilot project, the prepositioning initiative which starts on 1 July until 15 of September 2026 has steadily expanded - from 236 firefighters and 6 participating countries in its first year to 777 firefighters from 14 European countries today.
Their presence on standby ensures faster response times and enables valuable on-the-ground knowledge exchange among all participating teams.
3 both hosting and offering countries:France, Italy, Greece
- 3 hosting countries:
Portugal, Spain and Cyprus
- 11 offering countries:
Estonia, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, Malta, Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria
- 6 prepositioning locations:
Cyprus, Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal
4. Setting up a wildfire support team during summer months
During the high-risk summer months, a dedicated wildfire support team will reinforce the ERCC’s coordination and analytical capacity from June through September.
The team of experts from across Europe and additional EU civil protection staff, working in daily shifts of 5, will:
- monitor wildfire risks across Europe
- provide expert advice on weather and fire danger conditions
- produce regular reports
- oversee the activities of prepositioned forest firefighting teams
5. Using a range of scientific tools
The EU uses a range of national and European monitoring tools, including the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), which provides up-to-date and reliable information on wildland fires across Europe. EFFIS offers both short- and long-term fire danger forecasts, as well as near-real-time data on active fires and burned areas.
The EU's Copernicus Emergency Management Service can also be activated to produce satellite maps of wildfire-affected areas.
Looking into the future
The European Commission has allocated significant financial resources for the acquisition of 12 new firefighting planes for its permanent rescEU fleet, which will be stationed in:
- Portugal
- Spain
- France
- Italy
- Croatia
- Greece
It has also funded 5 rescEU helicopters, 2 of which will be based in Slovakia, 2 in Czechia, and 1 Romania. The first one has been already delivered in Romania earlier this year. The first airplanes are expected to be delivered in early 2028.
Resilience first
Beyond emergency response, the EU also supports and complements national prevention and preparedness measures - especially where a coordinated European approach proves more effective than individual national efforts. These actions include:
- conducting disaster risk assessments
- promoting research to enhance disaster resilience
- strengthening early warning systems
Currently, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism grants support 11 projects aiming to improve national preparedness and build long-term wildfire resilience.
