Wildfire destroyed more German forest last year than usual

DPAUpdated Tue, June 30, 2026 at 11:27 AM UTC1 min readAdd Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.

Germany lost a total of 2,626 hectares of forest to wildfire last year, more than three times the long-term average, the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food reported on Tuesday.

The office put the average between 1991 and 2024 at 844 hectares lost to wildfire each year.

A major fire in Gorischheide in Saxony at the beginning of July 2025 saw 1,867 hectares destroyed by fire.

Only in 1992, 2019 and 2022 was a greater area of forest hit by fire than in 2025.

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There were 1,175 fires recorded last year, in line with the long-term average of 1,139, but double the figure recorded in 2024, when widespread rain limited forest fires.

The office said it estimated that around a fifth of last year's fires had been set on purpose.

Preliminary figures for this year are not yet available.