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Scientists comment on wildfires in South Korea.
Dr Douglas Kelley, Land surface modeller, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), said:
“The wildfires in South Korea are part of a growing trend of extreme fires worldwide. In just the past year, we’ve seen major fires in several regions including Los Angeles, the Amazon and even the Pantanal in South America, the world’s largest tropical wetland area. Fires that used to happen once every few years are now occurring multiple times a year.
“Climate change is a key driver behind these fires. While strong winds and local factors play a role, the bigger picture is clear: rising temperatures and more intense, unpredictable droughts are creating the perfect conditions for wildfires to spread.
“South Korea is likely to face more frequent winter droughts in the future, especially in the areas currently affected by fires, as well as rising temperatures. This all points towards an increase in fire risk in the region in the coming decades.
“Cutting carbon emissions globally will limit the rise in temperatures and fall in winter rainfall in South Korea and many other parts of the world.”
Dr Douglas Kelley, Land surface modeller, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), said:
“The wildfires in South Korea are part of a growing trend of extreme fires worldwide. In just the past year, we’ve seen major fires in several regions including Los Angeles, the Amazon and even the Pantanal in South America, the world’s largest tropical wetland area. Fires that used to happen once every few years are now occurring multiple times a year.
“Climate change is a key driver behind these fires. While strong winds and local factors play a role, the bigger picture is clear: rising temperatures and more intense, unpredictable droughts are creating the perfect conditions for wildfires to spread.
“South Korea is likely to face more frequent winter droughts in the future, especially in the areas currently affected by fires, as well as rising temperatures. This all points towards an increase in fire risk in the region in the coming decades.
“Cutting carbon emissions globally will limit the rise in temperatures and fall in winter rainfall in South Korea and many other parts of the world.”
Prof Ilan Kelman, Professor of Disasters and Health, Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction (IRDR), University College London (UCL), said:
“Research published earlier this month by Korean scientists documented South Korea wildfires from 1991 to 2020 [1]. Their work shows how common these fires are: more than one per day on average. Most burned areas happen in April and May, with the wildfire season lengthening and shifting earlier into March, as we see now. Key factors in worsening wildfires are land use changes including planting forests (for important and solid reasons) and human-caused climate change.
“Full credit and thanks to these researchers for their impressive, timely, and much-needed analysis on wildfires in Korea, demonstrating that Korea must be far more prepared to prevent and tackle wildfires.”
1-https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-025-07169-4
Dr Zakary Campbell-Lochrie, Lecturer in Fire Science, University of Edinburgh, said:
“South Korea is one of many regions globally in which Spring is a particularly active Wildfire season, with March & April often particularly active months. As with the recent LA Wildfires, high winds along with a combination of high temperatures, low humidity and therefore dry vegetation appear to have combined resulting in severe, difficult to manage wildfire behaviour.
“One of the specific challenges highlighted in the ongoing response to these fires has been the protection of historic structures and heritage sites, many of which involve traditional wooden structures which may be particularly vulnerable to ignition. This includes a vulnerability to embers/firebrands (small burning particles which can be lofted and transported over significant distances before landing and accumulating, presenting an ignition risk). These can be produced by burning vegetation, for example bark flakes generated from the branches or trunks of pine trees and other species. Once a structure is ignited, under certain conditions, the fire can spread rapidly, and subsequently can present a significant risk for other neighbouring structures (including by itself becoming source of firebrand generation).”
Dr Thomas E L Smith, Associate Professor in Environmental Geography, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), said:
“The scale of the wildfires is astonishing. As of yesterday (Wednesday), there were two parallel fire fronts that extended about 90 km from the east coast of South Korea inland, stretching almost half the width of the country. To put this into a UK context – it would be like having an almost continuous wildfire extending from Liverpool to Leeds.
“This is a particularly dangerous time of year for fires in South Korea. The vegetation is still in ‘winter mode’, while the weather has been unusually warm and dry, with temperatures up to 10 degrees Celsius above average for this time of year. Shrubby fuels are particularly vulnerable while they are still dormant before ‘green-up’ later in the spring. They are unable to regulate their moisture levels while dormant and will quickly dry out in these high temperatures and dry conditions. I visited this region of South Korea at a similar time last year, and it is noticeable how dormant the landscape appears to be before things start to green up later in the year.
“It is this unusually warm and dry weather that has led to such a dangerous situation on the ground, with a lot of fuel made available to burn under these conditions.
“Climate change is an important factor to consider if we are to understand the fire danger in South Korea. There is a well-established relationship between high air temperatures (which drive low relative humidity) and the behaviour of a wildfire (how fast it spreads and the intensity with which it burns). During high wind situations, wildfires under our changing climate will burn faster and with greater intensity, hindering the efforts of firefighting teams on the ground.
“South Korea is also a champion of afforestation/reforestation, with many new forests planted over recent decades. This may also have increased fire risk in areas where there are immature woodlands. Mature trees are more resilient to wildfires due to their lack of connectivity between the ground and the canopies of the trees.
“he South Koreans have invested heavily in wildfire resilience in recent decades, recognising an increasing risk due to climate change and changing land-use practices. However, the sheer scale of these wildfires would overwhelm even the most prepared nations. The unprecedented extent of these wildfires combined with a densely packed population/infrastructure present a challenging situation for the authorities.”
Dr Kimberley Simpson, Fellow in nature-based climate solutions at the University of Sheffield’s School of Biosciences, said:
“Wildfires in California this past January and the ongoing fires in South Korea share several similarities. Both were preceded by unusually warm, dry conditions that left vegetation highly flammable, and both were intensified by strong winds that spread the flames and hampered firefighting efforts.
“Only three months into 2025, we’ve already witnessed record-breaking wildfire activity in multiple regions. As climate change drives rising temperatures and alters rainfall patterns, the conditions that give rise to these devastating fires are becoming more frequent.”
Declared interests:
Dr Kimberley Simpson: “None”
Dr Thomas E L Smith “None”
Dr Zakary Campbell-Lochrie “Nothing to declare in terms of any potential conflicts related to this story. More generally, I have worked on research projects funded by a variety of UK & US government bodies & research agencies including EPSRC, National Institute of Standards & Technology, Innovate UK and Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), Built by Nature, UK Ministry for Housing Communities & Local Government, 2050 Climate Group. I previously had short-term employment (6 months or less) at the following employers prior to 2017: Hoare Lea, Rolls Royce Plc.”
Prof Ilan Kelman “No interests to declare”
Dr Douglas Kelley “ No interests to declare”