A vast fire The beach of Punta Molentis In Villasimius, in the south of Sardinia. The stake, probably of malicious origin, was fed by Mistral which blew at a speed of about 35/40 km/h, causing the destruction of about 100 hectares of Mediterranean scrub.
The flames, arising in the hilly area of Riu Trottuon the border between Castiadas and Villasimius, they quickly reached the beach, blocking the escape routes for swimmers and burning the cars firm in the parking lot: they are not injured, but 102 people they were evacuated by sea Thanks to some inflatable boats of the Cagliari Coast Guard. To tame the fire, several firefighters intervened, which also used army helicopters and two Canadair coming from the Olbia base. In the meantime, this morning the flames also near Cala Liberoon the coast of Orosei: they were sent to the site 13 Fire Brigade teams and three Canadair.
For Sardinia, these are the fires of the season: the island, in general, is often affected by bonfires fueled by the strong winds and high temperatures, with serious damage to the vegetation. We therefore see an overview of the most devastating fires in Sardinia of the last decades and the data on the bonfires of 2024 and the first months of 2025.
2021 was the most devastating year for Sardinia
In general, Sardinia is among the islands most affected by forest fires: according to the estimates published by the Region, between the 1971 and the 2003 An average of 3,372 fires have occurred per year, with the flames that destroyed, every year, at least 13,000 hectares of vegetation. In those years, the most devastating fire was recorded in July 1983: The stake, of malicious origin, caused 9 victims, including 2 belonging to the regional forestry body and a forestry worker.
The fire broke out between Temple Pausania And Curraggia hillin the province of Sassari, and was fed by the strong winds and the high temperatures of those days. Due to the flames they went lost 18,000 hectareswith the destruction of woods, pine forests of Mediterranean pines and Mediterranean scrub.
Between the 2004 and 2014on the other hand, the average of the bonfires was approximately 1,000 per yearrecording about average 18,800 hectares burned. As can also be seen from the graph, over 50% of these fires have occurred in the years between 2007 and 2011.
In more recent times, however, the 2021 It was themost devastating year for Sardiniawhich between 24 and 29 July was hit by a fire of enormous size that broke out between Montiferru and Planargia (in the province of Oristano) which destroyed almost 13 thousand hectares of land, of which about 4 thousand woods. The stake involved 10 municipalities in Montiferru, causing important economic, social and environmental damages: according to data Isprait was the largest fire recorded throughout Italy during 2021.
To trigger the fire was probably acarsettled for a breakdown: the authorities then established the culpable origins of the fire (and therefore linked to an accident and not to a deliberate human action, as in the case of the arsoned fires). In any case, the gravity of the event led the Sardinia Region to declare it regional emergency state Until 31 October 2021.
The most recent data: the bonfires of 2024 and the first months of 2025
Although 2023 has marked an improvement in the number of bonfires compared to the previous year, in 2024 Sardinia remained among the regions most affected by forest fires: last year, in fact, on the island they were burned beyond 5,500 hectares of land, of which approximately 1,734 hectares covered with forests and forest ecosystems.
At the overall level, in 2024 Sardinia had been the Third region in Italy By burnt surface, where 11% of the hectares of the national total were lost. The most affected province was that of NuoroWhere 8 km² of forests have been destroyed.
Finally, looking at 2025according to the last Legambiente report, from the beginning of the year until 18 July in Sardinia they are already burned about 1,465 hectaresduring 19 bonfires: to these data, however, the hectares lost with the two fires of Villasimius and of Orosei. Meanwhile, the regional civil protection has issued a red stamp Throughout the eastern part of the island due to the danger of fires today, July 28th.
