The urban tally sits inside a much bigger number. LexisNexis, which built its picture from satellite data captured by the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (excluding industrial fires and low-confidence readings), counted 4,659 wildfire detections across the UK in 2025. That’s the highest annual figure across the decade of data LexisNexis analysed, comfortably ahead of the previous high of 3,305 in 2018, and almost five times the 951 logged in 2024.
