The EU has deployed assistance to Belgium and Spain following their activation of the EU civil protection mechanism (UCPM), as wildfires continue to affect several parts of Europe.
In Belgium, 2 planes from the EU’s firefighting fleet, rescEU, were dispatched from Sweden to Belgium, alongside 2 helicopters from the Netherlands, 2 from Norway and 2 from Germany, supporting local firefighters battling the blaze in the Hautes Fagnes. More than 3,000 hectares have burnt to date.
In Spain, 104 ground firefighters with 36 vehicles from France have come to the aid of Spanish firefighters in the Aragón region, where close to 16,000 hectares have already burnt.
The EU is also supporting emergency services with satellite mapping. The Copernicus Emergency Management Service is active for wildfires in Belgium, Spain, Greece, Germany, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, France and Italy, providing rapid maps to help authorities assess affected areas and organise the response.
Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, said:
‘No country should face wildfires alone. Through our civil protection mechanism, Europe is moving aircraft, helicopters and firefighters quickly to where they are needed most. This weekend in Belgium and Spain, European solidarity was on the ground again.‘
The 2026 wildfire season is already exceptionally severe. By the end of July, the area burned was already 2,5 times the usual level in Europe.
Through the UCPM, countries can rapidly draw on a much wider pool of firefighters, aircraft and other emergency capacities when national resources come under pressure. The European Commission’s emergency response coordination centre is at the centre of this system: it receives requests for assistance, coordinates offers from Member States and participating states, and supports the deployment of the capacities offered. The Commission also co-finances the deployments.
