Five Lies Poured on the Fire in the Fight Against Wildfires

When wildfires occur, the top priority of the first responder teams on the scene is always to ensure human safety and prevent potential loss of life. The second most important step is to minimize property damage in the settlements affected by the flames and protect the public's most valuable assets. However, in addition to these basic emergency responses, there is also a mandatory duty to fulfill regarding the public's access to accurate information. In particular, disinformation and unfounded news spreading through news media and social networks can cause serious confusion during times of crisis. It should not be forgotten that the lies and misleading information spread during wildfire disasters can have a tragic human cost.

False information spread during crisis periods not only prevents people from making the right decisions but also deeply damages trust in state institutions and authorities. Such baseless claims make it harder for citizens to understand the real causes of wildfires and prevent them from seeing the truth. Moreover, due to the effects of climate change, it is a scientific fact that these fires will occur much more frequently and reach much more destructive proportions in the future. For this reason, it is of vital importance to identify and debunk these types of dangerous lies that make firefighting efforts difficult and trigger public panic. Accurate information is indispensable both for effective crisis management and for building long-term resilience against disasters.

Contrary to popular belief, the myth that the European Union, the United Nations, and local forestry laws demand that forests be left unmanaged is completely fabricated. On the contrary, international institutions encourage practices such as extensive grazing, nomadic livestock farming, and sustainable forest management because they reduce fire risk. Relevant legislation not only permits but supports the removal of plant debris and the clearing of undergrowth. Only high-risk activities such as the use of burners, operating spark-emitting machines, or open-air barbecuing are temporarily restricted during certain periods. The main purpose of these restrictions is to prevent avoidable fires during periods when risk peaks, such as the summer months or extreme heatwaves.

Another common misconception frequently encountered on social media is the claim that summers are always hot and therefore wildfires are a natural event. The reality of climate change is causing temperature records to be broken consecutively worldwide and the frequency of extreme weather events to increase rapidly. Data released by the World Meteorological Organization clearly reveals that the warmest years on record have occurred in recent years. Scientific research proves that such extreme heatwaves, which were almost impossible fifty years ago, have become much more likely today. Therefore, attributing these destructive fires solely to seasonal heat means ignoring the severity of the climate crisis and its increasing danger compared to the past.

Another dangerous claim that drives society into outrage and has no basis in reality is that the fires are planned by an organized arson terrorism or criminal syndicate. Official reports published by the prosecutor's office in recent years show that there is no evidence to support these sensational mafia or terrorist organization theories. While statistics reveal that the vast majority of wildfires are human-caused, they also determine that only a very small fraction of them are started intentionally. Most fires start as a result of carelessness, negligence, or accidentally performed dangerous behaviors, and grow rapidly. Similarly, conspiracy theories that burned areas are immediately opened for development or used for power plants are completely unfounded due to strict legal regulations that mandate closing the region to development for decades after a fire.