Record-Breaking Wildfires Push UK Fire Services to Brink
The United Kingdom has experienced its most devastating wildfire season on record, with official figures revealing that more moorland, forests and fields have been destroyed by fire in 2025 than in any previous year since monitoring began. The scale of the devastation has placed unprecedented pressure on the nation's fire and rescue services, exposing critical gaps in resources and preparedness.
Alarming Statistics Reveal Growing Threat
According to data from the Global Wildfire Information System, wildfires had consumed 47,026 hectares (116,204 acres) across the UK by November 2025. This represents the largest area burned in any single year since records began in 2012, more than doubling the area destroyed during the previous record-breaking summer of 2022.
The Fire Brigades Union, supported by climate action groups and tax justice organisations, has issued a stark warning to the government in an open letter. "There is stark evidence that the UK is dangerously underprepared for the growing threat of wildfires, flooding, and the wider impacts of the climate crisis," the letter states, calling for substantial long-term investment in fire services.
Thin Resources and Specialist Equipment Shortages
The crisis became particularly evident during major incidents throughout the year. In August, the situation reached a critical point when 17 fire and rescue services had to be drafted from across the country, including units from as far as Greater Manchester, to combat a relentless wildfire on Holt Heath in Dorset. Local resources were described as "shockingly thin on the ground."
Many firefighters responding to the Dorset incident lacked specialist wildfire personal protective equipment, significantly increasing their risk of heatstroke, exhaustion and burns. This equipment shortage highlights the broader resourcing crisis facing the service, which has lost nearly 12,000 firefighters since 2010 - representing one in five frontline posts.
The problem extended beyond southern England. In September, North Yorkshire fire crews required assistance from farmers, gamekeepers and landowners to contain a massive blaze on Langdale Moor that burned for several weeks, demonstrating how widespread the wildfire threat has become.
Flooding Crisis Compounds Emergency Service Strain
The fire service is simultaneously bearing the brunt of increased flooding across the UK, creating a dual threat that stretches resources to breaking point. Recent revelations indicate that millions more homes across England, Scotland and Wales will face devastating floods in coming years, with some communities potentially becoming uninsurable due to climate breakdown.
Sam Harding, a Monmouth firefighter who rescued survivors when Storm Claudia hit the area, provided firsthand testimony of the service's struggle to cope. "The flooding was some of the worst we've had in recent years, and required all of our water rescue resources," he said. "If there had been another flooding incident elsewhere in south Wales requiring water rescue, I don't know how we would have been able to respond."
The letter to government, signed by Greenpeace, Tax Justice UK and Friends of the Earth among others, emphasises that central government funding has been cut by 30% in cash terms since 2010. This underinvestment has resulted in equipment shortages, under-staffed control rooms and insufficient protective gear across the service.
The organisations are urging the chancellor to provide immediate increased funding to ensure sufficient firefighters, emergency fire control staff and specialist resources to meet the escalating threats from both wildfires and flooding as the climate crisis intensifies.
