More than half of Europe and the Mediterranean region were affected by drought in the first ten days of August 2025, marking the highest percentage ever recorded for this period since 2012.
According to an analysis published by AFP, on the data of the European Drought Observatory (EDO), 51.3% of the continent is engulfed in drought, with large parts of alarm regions.
The data show that the situation has begun to deteriorate since mid -April, exceeding the extreme summer of 2022.
Drought is significantly affecting vegetation and water supply, while the most affected regions are the Caucasus and the Northern Balkans.
In Georgia and Armenia, 97% of the territory is included, while Albania, Kosovo, Serbia and Northern Macedonia have been set at alarm or readiness at over 75% of their surface.
According to the EDO monitoring system, which uses Copernicus satellite data on precipitation, soil moisture and vegetation health, 7.8% of the area is at the “alarm”, 38.7% in “warning” and 4.9% in “observation”.
Drought has also been accompanied by strong heat waves, which have caused numerous fires in the Balkans, including Albania and Montenegro, where victims are also reported.
Meanwhile, Central Europe has made improvements, with Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic that have regained normal moisture on Earth.
According to estimates collected by Effis, over one million hectares have so far been burned in the European Union territory in 2025, another disturbing record for the continent.
