Wildfires burn 38% of Attica's forests in nine years, METEO shows

Nine years of fire

Between 2017 and 2025, thirteen large wildfires swept through the mainland part of the Attica Region, burning a combined area of over 700,000 stremmata. The data, compiled by the METEO unit of the National Observatory of Athens, draws on reports from the Copernicus Rapid Mapping Service and the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). The total land area of Attica, excluding the Troizinia area, the islands, and the Athens basin, is 2,500,000 stremmata, meaning 28% of this territory has been scorched in less than a decade.

Forest loss in numbers

The impact on forested land is even starker. Attica's forest area is approximately 1,230,000 stremmata. Of that, 465,000 stremmata have burned, equivalent to 38% of the region's forest cover.

In the Attica Region, the forest area is about 1,230,000 stremmata and over the last 9 years approximately 465,000 stremmata of forest have burned, that is 38% of the forest area.

Data and methodology

The analysis updates previous assessments following the recent wildfire in Oinoi, Attica, on 5 July 2026. METEO used satellite-derived perimeter data from Copernicus and EFFIS to map the burned areas year by year from 2017 to 2025. The resulting map, published alongside the report, shows the cumulative scars in shades of red, pink, and purple for the most recent years, and yellow and orange for earlier fires. A summary table of annual burned areas accompanies the map.

A recurring threat

The Oinoi fire, while not included in the nine-year dataset, prompted the updated release. Attica's combination of hot, dry summers and dense wildland-urban interface makes it one of Europe's most fire-prone regions. The 38% forest loss figure illustrates the long-term toll of repeated large fires on the region's ecosystems.