by Le Monde

In Indonesia, 140 women are fighting devastating wildfires. With motorcycles, water pumps and courage they are protecting villages, forests and their families from the fast-spreading blazes. Image: Willy Kurniawan/REUTERS Women on the front lines The worst forest fires in more than a decade are raging on the Indonesian island of Borneo, destroying large areas of forest. Thick smoke is darkening the sky and causing severe respiratory problems among residents. In the sparsely populated province of West Kalimantan, 140 women have joined forces to contain the spread of the fires. Image: Willy Kurniawan/REUTERS Devastating wildfires Wildfires are a common occurrence during Indonesia’s dry season. This year, however, the fires have been burning longer than usual. The islands of Borneo and Sumatra are suffering from drought conditions caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon. Since the beginning of the year, about 202,000 hectares of land have burned across Indonesia, an area nearly as large as the Tokyo metropolitan region. Image: Willy Kurniawan/REUTERS Tackling fires with motorcycles and a water pump The volunteer women of the “Power of Mama” firefighting team travel by motorcycle between about ten villages. Wearing red protective gear, these farmers, homemakers and mothers tackle small fires and educate communities...

Originally published on August 20, 2026. Climate change, together with decades of land mismanagement, has made wildfires more frequent, more intense and harder to control – especially in Southern Europe. Citing the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS-Copernicus) data, Italian news outlet EUNews reported in March that more than one million hectares burned across Europe in nearly 7,800 fires in 2025 alone. France has faced another devastating wildfire season this year. In late July, fires swept through the Gironde region, threatening Bordeaux, ravaging the Cap Ferret peninsula and forcing around 220,000 people to evacuate. Although the major blazes were brought under control by early August, they left extensive damage across southwestern France. Even here in the Netherlands, where I live near Veluwe National Park, three separate forest fires had broken out before summer was fully underway – one requiring international firefighting support. While some ecosystems recover quickly after fire, and even benefit from it, others suffer long-term damage. Earlier and longer fire seasons, more intense heat waves, accumulated dry fuel, land conversion into flammable monocultures, and the abandonment of traditional land management practices (grazing, forest upkeep, native replanting, rotational weeding) have all made fires larger, more expensive and harder to...

A massive wildfire has broken out in central Colombia, threatening the popular tourist town of Villa de Leyva, according to local officials. The forest fire is near the Andean town in the Boyaca department, with flames engulfing the San Marcos hillside above the colonial architecture and cobblestone streets that attract more than a million visitors annually. The blaze has already consumed 40 hectares of native forest, sending massive plumes of smoke that are visible from the town’s central square, according to Colombian authorities. On Saturday night, Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella posted on X that “Villa de Leyva is not alone”, pledging to mobilise all state resources to fight the fire and protect “this historical jewel” and “beautiful city that is the pride of Colombia”. To combat the flames, the Boyaca department government said it is dispatching two aircraft. A military helicopter will also join the effort, along with firefighters from the capital, Bogota, Interior Minister Rodrigo Lara said. The mayor of Bogota, Carlos Fernando Galan, will be sending a team of firefighters to join local crews from Tunja and Boyaca, reinforcing containment efforts and securing the urban centre, Lara said. In the equatorial Andes, forest fires peak during...

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... PENDLETON — The following is the Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 13 and 14, update on the Paradise and Hagen fires in the Umatilla National Forest. This is the last update for the Paradise Fire from Team 8 as it returns to the local forest today at 6 p.m. Fire Information 541-970-7128 2026paradise@firenet.gov inciweb.wildfire.gov Facebook and YouTube Hagen Fire Size: 61,381 acres Containment: 87% Personnel: see Paradise Fire Paradise Fire Size: 9,656 acres Containment: 86% Personnel: 678 — includes Hagen fire personnel Key messages Incident management team transition: Northwest Incident Management Team 8 will turn over the Paradise Fire to the local forest at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15. Team 8 will turn over the Hagen Fire to Northwest Incident Management Team 7 on Sept. 16, at 7a.m. Wet weekend weather: The weekend storms brought significant rain that continued until early morning hours of Sept. 14. The Paradise Fire received 1.62 inches of rain and the Hagen Fire received 1.82 inches. While rain may seem to be a helpful element on a wildfire, the effects can hamper the repair efforts. Inclement weather and firefighter safety: Rain can create slick conditions for crews repairing fire lines...

Experts warn that Türkiye’s forest fire risk continues despite the arrival of autumn, urging authorities to maintain preventive measures in fire-prone areas according to meteorological conditions. Yılmaz Çatal, rector of Isparta University of Applied Sciences, explained that rainfall this year has improved vegetation and soil moisture compared with previous years, somewhat improving Türkiye’s overall wildfire outlook. “However, this does not mean that the fire season has ended. Especially on days when high temperatures, low relative humidity and strong winds occur simultaneously, fire behavior can change very rapidly within a few hours,” Çatal said. He noted that Western Europe experienced a difficult summer under early and severe heat waves, adding that Türkiye’s favorable situation remains fragile. “The August-September period is the most critical part of the season. During the rainy season, large amounts of grass and shrubs have grown in forests, agricultural areas and forest clearings, creating ideal fuel conditions for fires,” he said. Çatal said nearly 90% of forest fires are caused by human activity and that favorable weather alone does not eliminate the risk. He said the area burned per fire, number of large fires, response times and meteorological conditions should be monitored together. “We saw temperatures above seasonal...

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... PENDLETON — The following is the Saturday, Sept. 12, update on the Paradise and Hagen fires in the Umatilla National Forest. Fire Information 541-970-7128 2026paradise@firenet.gov inciweb.wildfire.gov Facebook and YouTube Hagen Fire Size: 61,386 acres Containment: 66% Personnel: see Paradise Fire Paradise Fire Size: 9,656 acres Containment: 28% Personnel: 882 — includes Hagen fire personnel Key messages Road and landscape repair efforts: Crews and heavy equipment have begun the arduous task of repairing the landscape and the road systems affected by the fire and fire suppression. Fire damaged trees are being removed from the roadsides, water bars are being constructed to prevent soil erosion and roads are being graded. Forest and fire managers continue to assess the repair work progress and will reopen the forest roads as soon as it is safe to do so for both the firefighters and the public. Hunters entering closure area: Hunters have been spotted within the forest closure area. Please respect the forest closure and remain clear of the area until the closure is lifted. Many areas in the footprint of the fire have fire weakened trees, slick roads, hot ash pits and the potential for active fire. Law...

About 100 firefighters and two helicopters are battling a forest fire on the Ifersgunten alpine pasture in the municipality of Egg, ORF Vorarlberg reports. The fire was reported at about 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. The blaze has affected around 500 square metres, according to the mayor of Mittelberg i…

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... PENDLETON — The following is the Monday, Sept. 7, update on the Paradise and Hagen fires in the Umatilla National Forest. Fire Information 541-970-7128 2026paradise@firenet.gov inciweb.wildfire.gov Facebook and YouTube Hagen Fire Size: 61,396 acres Containment: 56% Personnel: see Paradise Fire Paradise Fire Size: 9,646 acres Containment: 28% Personnel: 906 — includes Hagen fire personnel Key Messages Road and area access — Fire crews and equipment are still working on forest roads and within closed areas. These closures are in place as heavy machinery, potholes, unstable trees, and hidden hot spots can make these areas dangerous to enter. Hunters and visitors must stay out of closed areas and roads until they reopen — Boundaries are reviewed daily and areas will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so. Suppression repair — Heavy equipment operators and hand crews are repairing areas disturbed during firefighting. Specialists are guiding this work to stabilize soil, improve drainage, remove damaged trees that could fall, and reduce the impact of bulldozer tracks, cleared lines, access routes, and staging areas. Mop‑up and patrol — Firefighters continue checking and patrolling the fire’s edges, putting out any remaining hot spots. Crews are...

Peshtigo burned in 1871 and Lahaina in 2023, and the fires between them changed how Americans think about evacuation and public relief during forest fires. Determining the deadliest wildfire disasters in US history is not as simple as counting death tolls. Records from the 1800s are incomplete, estimates vary, and some familiar names refer to a single fire, while others encompass dozens of fires burning across a region. Modern disasters also blur the boundary between a wildfire and an urban conflagration: vegetation may carry the flames into a community, but buildings can then become the principal fuel. The fires below are US wildland and wildland-urban disasters that were exceptionally deadly or historically consequential, presented in chronological order. These forest fires show how dangerous fire becomes when drought, wind, abundant fuel, and limited escape routes converge. Peshtigo Fire, 1871 On the evening of October 8, 1871, a firestorm swept through northeastern Wisconsin and adjoining areas of Michigan. The town of Peshtigo was consumed in less than two hours, and an estimated 800 people died there alone. Across the broader fire area, the death toll is generally estimated at between 1,200 and 2,500, making Peshtigo the deadliest wildfire disaster in recorded US...