Wildfires Leave Psychological Scars: Trauma Risk for Firefighters and Civilians

Europe's 2026 wildfire season is the worst on record, and the damage goes beyond charred forests and destroyed homes. Mental health experts warn that both firefighters battling the blazes and civilians living through them face a serious risk of lasting psychological trauma.

On the front lines: fear and loss of control

Peter Berndgen, spokesperson for the Düren volunteer fire brigade fighting the Hürtgenwald blaze in North Rhine-Westphalia, describes conditions that push responders to their psychological limits. Twelve-hour shifts in choking smoke, burning eyes, and a constant awareness that the situation could spin out of control — that a tree might fall, that the fire might change direction — create what he calls a permanent state of vigilance. "The fear, almost anxiety, you can have is: where is my escape route? How do I get out of here? I'm in the middle of a forest," Berndgen told DW.

Science: fires cause trauma to body and mind

Psychiatrist Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg of the German Center for Mental Health, co-author of the Berlin Declaration on Climate Change and Mental Health, says such situations can have lasting effects. The risk of PTSD applies not only to firefighters, who are exposed to life-threatening situations repeatedly, but also to local residents who lose their homes or watch their communities burn. Prolonged smoke inhalation also causes direct physiological harm to airways and lungs.

Prevention and support

Experts underline the importance of psychological debriefing and support systems for emergency responders after large-scale incidents. For communities, early warning systems and evacuation planning can reduce the sense of helplessness that fuels trauma. As the climate crisis drives more frequent and intense fires across Europe, mental health infrastructure will need to scale to match the physical emergency response.