Since January 1, fires have devastated 662,776 hectares of forests in the European Union, according to data updated on Sunday by the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), which maintains comparable statistics since 2006, thanks to satellite images from the European program Copernicus.

The area most affected by the fires is the Iberian Peninsula and, although the high season for fires has not yet ended, data from the European Union show the most serious situation ever experienced at this time of year.

The previous record for Europe was in 2017, when 420,913 hectares had burned by 13 August and 988,087 hectares in total for the year, more than 400,000 in a single month.

Spain, with a severe drought and several heat waves this summer, has seen 246,278 hectares ravaged by fires, mostly in Galicia in the northwest.

In terms of burned areas, after Spain, Romania (150,528 hectares), Portugal (75,277 hectares) and France (61,289 hectares) are the most affected countries, according to data from the European service.