...SICILY ISLAND, ITALY - AUG. 9, 2025: A wildfire erupted near the town of Piana degli Albanesi, close to Palermo on the Italian island of Sicily, on Saturday, Aug. 9. Firefighting crews tackled the blaze both on the ground and from the air in an effort to bring it under control. Italy recorded approximately 700 wildfires between January and July 2025, burning more than 320 square kilometers of land, the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS) said Wednesday. In comparison, wildfires destroyed a total of 514 square kilometers throughout 2024, the institute noted, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. According to Gaetano Settimo, coordinator of the ISS’s National Study Group on Indoor Pollution, Sicily experienced the largest area affected by fires last year, with 175 square kilometers burned, followed by Calabria with 102 square kilometers. “Although summer is typically the season when more fire events occur due to higher temperatures and increased human activity outdoors, in recent years the seasonality of wildfires is disappearing,” Settimo warned. He believes climate change is playing a significant role in the shift in weather patterns. “We are seeing increasingly irregular weather patterns, coupled with insufficient attention to land management and prevention measures,” he added. Settimo urged year-round vigilance, stressing that wildfire risk is no longer limited to the summer months. “The issue demands continued attention throughout the year,” he said.