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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Ajit Niranjan

Wildfires devastating richer areas but fewer hectares burned globally – study

Houses engulfed in flames with a palm tree bending in strong winds and smoke filling the air
Trees sway in high winds as the Eaton fire rips through Altadena, California, on 8 January last year. Photograph: Ethan Swope/AP

“Devastating” wildfires ripped across the wealthier parts of the world in 2025, a study has found, even as globally, the area ravaged by flames fell.

Catastrophic blazes claimed lives, homes and jobs last year in California, Canada, Europe and South Korea. But the 335m hectares burned was the second-lowest since 2002, the review found, largely owing to the expansion of African farms that have fragmented landscapes and hampered the spread of large savannah fires.

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