Filenews 22 November 2025 - by Michalis Chatzivasilis
A slight increase in rural and urban fires was recorded this year compared to last year, while there is still more than a month left before 2025 bids us farewell.
However, the increase in fire damage this year is huge, due to the deadly disaster in mountainous Limassol last July. The damage from the fire that started in Malia and spread to 19 other communities in the Limassol District is estimated at €61 million so far. Not counting factories, agricultural properties and machinery. Estimates of the damage are still ongoing. It is estimated that by the end of the year, the damage from the fires, excluding forest fires, will exceed €100 million compared to €29.5 million estimated by the Fire Service last year. The difference is huge since for the first time so many properties were burned, while if the loss of two human lives is taken into account, then the cost is unbearable. As far as the scorched land is concerned, this has not been calculated in total, but the 100 sq.km that burned in Limassol, put this year as one of the worst, if not the worst.
According to data from the Fire Service, this year until November 20, 6.266 fires broke out, either in the urban fabric or in the countryside, compared to 6.717 we had throughout 2024. However, if we subtract the 593 fires we had last December last year, then last year's fires in the same period as this year amount to 6,124.
The fact that last April the fires skyrocketed over a thousand, which shows that climate change has left its imprint on our country as well, is sensational. It is unprecedented, in April, which is essentially the beginning of spring, that 1091 fires break out, with 90% of them affecting the countryside. In the same month in 2024 we had 790 fires, which is 301 more this year. Another important element recorded this year is that from the very first month, January, which is considered a winter month, the increase in fires began and continued until April. In May, a significant decrease was observed to increase the incidents again in the months of June and July and then in the following months the fires moved slightly lower than last year until the current month, where there is a significant decrease in incidents. Analytically:
In January this year we had 552 fires compared to 426 in 2024, in February 513 this year with 445 in '24, in March this year 793 fires were recorded compared to 666 last year, in April as we wrote we had the record where fires exceeded a thousand in a month. We had 1091 compared to 790 last year, while in May a decrease in incidents began to be seen from 803 fires last year to 564 this year. In June, 584 fires were recorded compared to 524 last year, while in July we had another 462 compared to 437 in '24. August is at about the same levels as last year since this year we had 398 cases compared to 423 last year. The same picture appears in September with 424 fires this year and 428 last year. October is at the same levels last year and this year since in '24 we had 549 fires and in '25 515. For the current month, according to the data of the Fire Service, we have had 370 fires to date, while last year 593.
The action of arsonists is of great concern
Most fires broke out in the city and province of Nicosia, followed closely by Limassol and third by Larnaca. Specifically, the Fire Brigade responded to 1497 fires that broke out in the province of Nicosia, to 1450 fires in the province of Limassol, another 895 in the province of Larnaca, to 715 incidents in Paphos, 354 in Famagusta, while EMAK responded to 81 fires. It is clarified that the total number per province differs from the total number of fires (per month) mentioned above, because for several fires the report of events has not yet been completed and therefore they are not passed into the system per province.
At the same time, the Fire Brigade responded to another 4336 special services related to either the trapping of people from traffic accidents or from falls in ravines or elevators, for pumping water from flooded premises, etc. Also this year the Service received 650 false calls, i.e. it responded to non-existent incidents.
The causes of fires, as recorded by the Fire Brigade, continue to be the same every year. As we were told, 90% of fires are due to the human factor, i.e. they are either caused by the negligence of people involved in scorching, or by the recklessness of someone trying to weld a structure and the sparks cause a fire to explode, or even by malicious acts.
The authorities responsible for prevention and firefighting have observed this year that several fires have broken out in the same areas many times, or there may have been different outbreaks in one area at the same time, which immediately refers to the work of arsonists. This has been found in both the province of Paphos and Limassol, which is why preventive patrols were organized to locate the arsonists.
The arrest of a person who had allegedly tried to set fire to the Troodos forest using solid oil had caused a special sensation, however fortunately it was extinguished by a passing citizen.
Preventive measures
For the purpose of preventing fires, both the Fire Brigade and the Department of Forests have installed smoke detection systems, cameras with sensors, while aerial patrols are being carried out in order to detect smoke. At the same time, the drones available to the two services are also being mobilized both for precautionary reasons and for better image purposes in case a fire breaks out.
At the same time, the Fire Service is currently being equipped with special sensors and cameras that will be installed in all industrial zones, so that it can have a picture 24 hours a day and in case of a fire to respond immediately and not wait for an alert.
| MINAS | 2024 | 2025 |
| January | 426 | 552 |
| February | 445 | 513 |
| March | 666 | 793 |
| April | 790 | 1091 |
| May | 803 | 564 |
| June | 524 | 584 |
| July | 437 | 462 |
| August | 423 | 398 |
| September | 428 | 424 |
| October | 549 | 515 |
| November | 633 | 370 |
| December | 593 | |
| Total | 6717 | 6266 |
