Wildfire smoke causes nearly 100,000 excess deaths a year - UN
Baku, September 8, AZERTAC
Wildfire smoke caused nearly 100,000 additional deaths annually between 2010 and 2018, according to a bulletin from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
The agency reports that extreme wildfires are becoming more frequent, with serious health consequences due to the toxicity of smoke. The bulletin’s authors note that "extreme fire-smoke events have tripled globally since the 1990s," contributing to an estimated "nearly 100,000 additional deaths per year between 2010-2018." They caution that the actual figures could be higher.
According to WMO experts, standard risk assessment models fail to account adequately for smoke toxicity and may underestimate the associated mortality by up to 93%. The organization also warns that rising pollution from wildfires and heatwaves could undermine international efforts to improve air quality.
In 2025, concentrations of fine particulate matter known as PM2.5, which poses a health hazard, exceeded average levels in northern Canada, parts of Russia, and West and Central Africa. WMO experts attribute this to increased fire activity. Northwestern Spain was another pollution hotspot last year.
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