Cyprus’s warm weather and natural scenery are two of its biggest selling points. But for an island in the Mediterranean, those exact features come at a heavy cost. When midsummer heat hits, the island’s dry pine forests and open fields become incredibly vulnerable to fast-moving fires.
The ongoing danger was highlighted again today, with the Forestry Department putting the island on high warning. Officials announced that today, Wednesday, July 22, the risk of forest fires starting and spreading rapidly will sit at the maximum “Red Alert” level.
As the island prepares for another day of high-risk, en.philenews has looked back at some of the biggest and most destructive fires in Cyprus’s history.
1. The 1974 war fires (~216km² burned)
By far the largest fire disaster in Cyprus’s history. During the 1974 conflict, heavy bombardment and artillery fire ignited massive blazes across the Paphos Forest and northwestern Troodos range. According to Cyprus government data, 35% of the island’s most productive forest areas burnt down, destroying over 25,000 hectares of productive pine forests.
2. The Limassol megafire & Souni-Zanatzia destruction – July 2025 (~125 km² / 12,500 hectares burned)
The largest wildfire event in Cyprus’s modern history swept through the foothills of Limassol across 13 villages, destroying over 125 square kilometers of land. The semi-mountainous community of Souni-Zanatzia suffered the brunt of the disaster, where fast-moving crown fires burned through dense pine forest into residential areas. Over 40 homes were completely destroyed in Souni alone as residents organised emergency self-evacuations alongside local volunteers. The island-wide blaze, reportedly caused by a discarded cigarette butt, claimed two lives, damaged over 650 buildings, and caused an estimated €40 million in destruction before being brought under control.
3. The Kyrenia mountain fire – June 1995 (16,000 acres burned)
Driven by 50 mph winds, a three-day inferno swept across the Pentadaktylos (Kyrenia) mountain range, destroying over 16,000 acres of forest, olive groves, and farmland, as reported at the time in Cyprus Today. The fire gutted or damaged nearly 50 houses, destroyed parts of the 13th-century St. Hilarion Castle, and caused over £43 million in damage. An international firefighting effort, including British helicopters, Turkish air tankers, and UN personnel, eventually contained the blaze, which was widely suspected to be arson.
4. The Arakapas fire – July 2021 (~50 km² / 12,000 acres)
This deadly blaze broke out near Arakapas during a blistering heatwave and swept across the southern foothills of the Troodos range. Fanned by strong winds, it destroyed over 50 sq km of forest and farmland, burned down 50 homes, and forced the evacuation of 10 villages across the Limassol and Larnaca districts. Four Egyptian farmworkers lost their lives near the village of Odou while attempting to flee the fast-moving flames.
5. The Vavla fire – June 2000 (~52 km² / 5,200 hectares burned)
Striking the mountainous area of the Larnaca district, this fire scorched over 50 square kilometers of forestry and farmland around Vavla, Lagia, and Ora.
The scars left across the Troodos mountains and rural villages are permanent reminders of Cyprus’s vulnerability to extreme heat, and with the Forestry Department placing the island on high warning this week, the lesson from past disasters is clear.
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