Europe is being ravaged by a wave of wildfires and blistering heat as a dangerous combination of high winds, drought, and soaring temperatures triggers mass evacuations.
Throughout July, there have been scenes of scorched landscapes and sheer panic from Greece to Turkey and Italy.
Terrified beachgoers were seen fleeing by boat from beaches in Italy’s Sardinia Island as fires surged inland.
Dramatic scenes unfolded on July 27 at Villasimius in southern Sardinia, where flames tore down towards the shoreline, trapping dozens of beachgoers.
With roads cut off, tourists were rescued by boat, while many cars were engulfed in flames behind them.
According to officials, strong winds were hindering rescue operations as people scrambled to get on the boats.
Meanwhile, in Turkey, temperatures hit a national record of 50°C, fanning flames that have already killed dozens of people and forced tens of thousands of residents to run for their lives.
Officials fighting to keep the fires under control have called the situation ‘apocalyptic’.
Thick smoke could be seen emanating from the wooded area as beachgoers enjoyed the sun in Sardinia
Beachgoers in Sardinia were forced to escape the fires on a boat as other escape routes were blocked by the blaze
Cars burned nearby, preventing tourists from using them to flee from the blaze
Hundreds try to escape as a huge fire rips through Bursa, Turkey’s fourth largest city
In Greece, hundreds of firefighters are battling out-of-control infernos stretching from Crete to Evia and the Peloponnese, as locals and holidaymakers are ordered to abandon homes and hotels under choking clouds of smoke.
This month, a massive blaze erupted near Ierapetra, Crete, with walls of fire tearing through dry brush and hillside communities. With some fires still active, the UK’s Foreign Office has issued a travel advisory to the popular holiday destination.
More than 1,500 people were officially evacuated, though reports suggest up to 5,000 tourists left on their own as flames crept dangerously close to coastal resorts
Fires are also raging on the mainland, with Evia, Kythera, Attica and the Peloponnese all on red alert.
Authorities described the situation as a ‘titanic battle’, with reinforcements called in from EU partners to try and contain the devastation.
As flames spread through southern Turkey, the country registered its highest-ever temperature on July 25, with the town of Silopi in Şırnak Province hitting a blistering 50.5C, breaking the previous record of 49.1C set in 2021.
The unprecedented heat has turned huge swathes of countryside into a tinderbox, sparking dozens of wildfires in İzmir, Hatay, Bursa, Karabuk, Eskişehir and beyond.
Dramatic scenes in Greece as firefighters contend with a massive outbreak
Last week, several people were forced to leave their homes as fire burned through Cyrpus
A couple told MailOnline how they fled from wildfires in Souni, Cyprus and came back to find their villa burned down
Smoke rises among burning trees after a huge fire broke out in Karabuk, Turkey
In İzmir Province, more than 50,000 residents were forced to flee 41 settlements in late June after firestorms engulfed entire villages. The flames later reached Dörtyol in Hatay, triggering the evacuation of another 2,000 people.
Tragically, at least 17 people have been confirmed dead, including volunteer firefighters, civilian responders, and locals overwhelmed by the flames in Eskişehir, Bursa, and Karabuk.
In Bursa alone, nearly 1,800 residents were displaced as 1,900 emergency crews scrambled to contain several active fires.
Footage shared online shows thick black smoke blanketing motorways and panicked families loading belongings into cars as embers fall from the sky.
Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on X: ‘We remain on alert day and night with 27 aircraft, 105 helicopters, nearly 6,000 ground vehicles, 25,000 heroic forestry personnel, and 132,000 volunteers.’
Meanwhile, the country’s agriculture and forestry minister said: ‘We are going through high-risk days’ and warned that the crisis may not be over until October.
The three nations are not the only European countries battling wildfires this summer.
Cyprus, Spain, Albania, and Montenegro have all contended with huge blazes in the last month.
Many areas and houses have been burned down in Greek cities like Crete and Athens
Around 2,000 residents were forced to leave their homes in Delvina, Albania
A tractor cuts a fireline as wildfire rages on in the settlement of Beledie Han, Bulgaria
In Cyprus, a fiery blaze last week left thousands of people displaced. An elderly couple escaping the fires in their car were trapped inside and burned alive.
A couple told Mail Online how they rushed to escape the flames with seconds to spare and returned to find their dream villa burned to the ground.
Albania firefighters are also facing dozens of fire fronts due to a combination of the heatwave and suspected arson.
On Friday, around 2,000 residents in Delvina were forced to leave their homes.
Several homes have been damaged, and many forestlands have been left charred.
In Bulgaria, as a result of high temperatures, 11 regions have been put on red alert as the country fights to contain over 230 fire fronts.
In Kosovo, officials have been able to put out 17 fires that were fuelled by strong winds. However, 12 remain active.
Eight cows were killed on a farm in Prizren when a fire broke out, according to firefighters. A separate fire in another region also killed 40 sheep.
Black cloud could be seen in Sardinia as authorities rushed to get beachgoers to safety
France has also seen its fair share of fires as trees burn in Martigues
In France, a fast‑moving wildfire near Marseille on 8 July 2025 injured approximately 100 people.
It destroyed around 10 homes and prompted the evacuation of roughly 400 residents, while Marseille-Provence Airport suspended all flights temporarily.
The blaze scorched about 350 hectares in the Les Pennes‑Mirabeau area, forcing shutdowns of highways, rail services and tunnels into and out of the city.
