Wildfires rage in France and Greece as Belgium tackles enormous blaze – Europe live
Wildfire thought to be largest in Belgium’s history creeps closer to German border prompting evacuations Belgium’s King Philippe will visit the area affected by what is believed to be the largest wildfire in the country’s history this morning, after a weekend of intense firefighting in the Hautes Fagnes nature reserve. The fire has been raging since Friday afternoon, burning more than 3,000 hectares of land, provisional figures show.
The European Commission has deployed assistance to Belgium and Spain as part of the bloc’s civil protection mechanism.
Two Swedish planes from the EU’s firefighting fleet were dispatched to Belgium , alongside two helicopters each from the Netherlands, Norway and Germany, the executive arm of the bloc said.
Over in Spain , 104 ground firefighters and 36 vehicles from France joined local efforts to fight various blazes.
The EU is also continuing to support emergency efforts with satellite mapping through its Copernicus service.
Coverage from 5 sources
- Wildfires rage in France and Greece as Belgium tackles enormous blaze – Europe liveGuardian - World · Jakub Krupa · Aug 17, 2026, 8:50 AM
- Belgium tackles enormous wildfire as French PM booed on visit to affected region – Europe liveGuardian - World · Jakub Krupa · Aug 17, 2026, 9:48 AM
- French PM booed on visit to wildfire-affected region as Belgium tackles enormous blaze – Europe liveGuardian - World · Jakub Krupa · Aug 17, 2026, 11:10 AM
- French PM booed on visit to wildfire-affected region as EU sends assistance to Belgium and Spain – Europe live
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