Latvia extinguished 264 forest fires during the fire-danger period

Latvia extinguished 264 forest fires covering about 200 hectares during this year’s forest fire-danger period, which ended on September 30, LSM reported.

Rainy weather kept the number of fires and the area burned relatively low, allowing more time for training and cooperation with the National Armed Forces.

“There were 264 fires this year, compared with 201 last year. Those numbers are quite low: Latvia has had years with more than 1,000 fires. This year, most of the fires were extinguished in spring,” said Agris Šūmanis, head of forest fire protection at the State Forest Service.

Spring was dry but also sufficiently cold, so the fires did not cause damage across large areas, Šūmanis said. He said he hoped the situation would not worsen, adding that climate change was becoming increasingly visible in Europe this summer.

A law adopted in 2025 sets the forest fire-danger period each year from April 1 to September 30.