WorldFirefighters in Serbia fought a wildfire for a second consecutive day in the Deliblato Sands reserve. Helicopters dropped water on the blaze from the air. Authorities evacuated residents as the firefighting effort continued. The incident remains focused on the reserve and nearby communities.
Reuters
Economy3:29Europe’s rivers have supplied power across the continent for centuries. But falling water levels in the Danube are now forcing nuclear reactors to shut down. The disruption reveals a less visible vulnerability in Europe’s energy system, where river conditions can affect electricity production.
TechEuropean startups are putting new aircraft concepts through testing as they seek replacements for aging Canadair planes. Wildfires are placing increasing strain on firefighting fleets, creating demand for updated aerial-response designs. The efforts center on developing aircraft suited to the challenges of future wildfire seasons.
Reuters
SocietyClimate disruption has become an immediate reality for French agriculture rather than a distant projection. Thévenot describes 2026 as a turning point, with the crisis affecting farming as well as economic and cultural life. His own farm has been only partly affected because its production cycle ended earlier in the season. Meanwhile, he sees vegetable growers, livestock farmers and fruit producers struggling every day across southwestern France.
WorldSome French winegrowers, including producers in the Bordeaux region, began picking grapes on Thursday. The harvest is unusually early after a summer of repeated heatwaves, drought and destructive wildfires. One grape-picker said they would normally still be on holiday at this point. Despite the environmental upheaval, winemakers say the wine’s quality itself will not suffer. Climate change has already been pushing harvest seasons earlier, affecting farmers across the country.
WorldItaly is enduring its fourth heatwave of the season, with the Health Ministry issuing high-alert warnings across the country. In Rome, the oppressive heat continued through the night, with average temperatures around 30 degrees on Thursday evening. Sweating tourists carried fans and refillable bottles as they queued at a dispenser near the Colosseum or used drinking fountains around the city center.
The Associated Press
EconomyEurope is confronting an escalating climate crisis while its economic and geopolitical environment remains volatile. Hot, dry conditions across the continent are placing communities at risk from deadly wildfires. Falling water levels in rivers and critical waterways could disrupt power facilities and hinder the movement of coal, fuel and industrial commodities. Guests on The Opening Trade discussed the continuing pressures created by the situation.
Bloomberg Television
WorldWildfires and falling water levels have affected parts of Europe during July and August. Hundreds of homes have been destroyed, while residents have been evacuated as firefighters across the continent work to contain the flames. Severe drought has also left reservoirs and rivers with unusually low levels, adding to pressure on water resources across the region.
WorldExtreme heat, extended drought and climate change are raising the danger of destructive wildfires across Europe. In France’s Gironde region, firefighters and volunteers are shown battling a blaze described as one of the most severe since World War II. Their efforts underscore the urgent demand for stronger prevention, more advanced early-warning systems and closer European cooperation. The goal is to better protect communities and forests from a worsening climate threat.
WorldFrance has seen 116,000 hectares consumed by wildfires this year, the largest area recorded since 1949. Heatwaves are helping drive fires across Europe. Around 2,000 hectares of the UNESCO-listed Fontainebleau forest have been burned. Insurers are warning that claims could reach unprecedented levels, while authorities say roughly 70 percent of the fires were deliberately started. The report comes from Fontainebleau, France.
OtherWildfires across France have left behind huge quantities of felled and burned timber. More than 35,000 metric tons of trees were cut down urgently to create firebreaks and help slow the flames. The timber industry is now under substantial strain as it tackles the backlog. Removing and processing all the wood is expected to take more than two years.
WorldSatellite imagery captures the Danube River before and after drought-driven water loss. Record-low levels have exposed sandbanks along the river. The disruption is affecting nuclear and hydropower production in Hungary and Serbia. The images highlight the marked change in the river’s condition as water levels fell.
Reuters
SocietyA severe heatwave sweeping the Balkans is putting rare European water buffalo under intense stress at Serbia’s largest buffalo farm. Extreme temperatures have made it difficult for the animals to cope. Drought has taken away the ponds they rely on for cooling. The loss of those water sources leaves the buffalo facing even greater heat exposure.
Reuters
SocietySouth Korea’s latest heatwave is exposing a sharp divide across Seoul. Some residents are able to run air conditioners with government subsidies, while homeless people have little option but to endure the heat. In cramped, low-income neighbourhoods, misting machines and water sprayed through alleys provide only limited relief as temperatures rise above 40°C. Downtown streets and cafés that were once busy are nearly empty, as workers and families head for streams and riverside pools seeking cooler air.
WorldWrecks of German ships from the World War II era have resurfaced along the Danube in Serbia. Record-low river levels exposed vessels that were sunk at the end of the war by the retreating Nazi army. The newly visible wrecks mark a wartime episode preserved beneath the river. Their appearance follows the sharp decline in the Danube’s water level.
The Associated Press
WorldWildfires are still burning across Europe, with firefighters battling flames near Athens as winds finally weaken. Extreme heat has pushed rivers including the Rhine to record lows, reducing commercial traffic in Germany and Poland to a trickle. Hungary’s only nuclear power plant is operating at just 10% because the Danube cannot supply enough cooling water. Officials anticipate a cold front, but warn that more intensely hot days remain possible as climate change continues to shape conditions.
SocietySeoul’s elderly residents are turning to cooling mist systems for relief as South Korea faces a record heatwave. The systems offer a way to ease the effects of the exceptional heat. The item highlights the experience of older people in the capital during the extreme weather.
Reuters
ScienceCarys Garland welcomes Alexander Held, a senior expert with the Resilience Programme for Integrated Fire Management. Held says Europe’s worsening wildfire crisis is revealing the limits of a system centered on emergency suppression instead of long-term resilience. He argues that the European Union has made major progress in coordinating firefighting efforts. Yet, in his view, it still mostly intervenes after fires have already become uncontrollable, rather than preventing the conditions that allow them to escalate.
ScienceHungary has reduced production at its only nuclear power plant to 10 percent and is expected to shut the facility later this week. Record-low levels on the Danube are affecting several other countries as well. Rupert Read, co-founder of the Climate Majority Project, offers his view on whether climate change alone explains the situation.
WorldWildfires are raging across Greece. The fires are threatening homes in affected areas, as the flames continue to spread with potentially serious consequences for residents. The situation has placed nearby properties at risk.
WorldRomanian naval forces carried out a controlled explosion in the Danube. The blast destroyed a rock so that the flow of a large volume of water could be redirected. The water was sent toward the Old Danube and the Cernavodă nuclear power plant. The operation was intended to help provide cooling for the facility.