High fire danger period extended until October 15

The General Directorate of Forest Defense, under the Department of Rural Affairs of the Xunta de Galicia, has extended the high-risk period for forest fires during the year 2026 to the dates between October 1 and 15. The measure, signed by the general director Manuel Francisco Gutiérrez, is published in the Official Gazette of Galicia (DOG) no. 182, of Thursday, September 24, 2026, in the Resolution of September 22, 2026 (official reference i4zozos5-rlq3-isz5-k2y4-bfeqgi2kmqo5).

An extension motivated by meteorological conditions

The resolution justifies the extension «due to current meteorological conditions», without adding further details regarding the specific variables motivating the decision. The text limits its scope to a single end date: October 15, 2026, fifteen days after the initially planned closure.

Until now, the 2026 high-risk period was set between July 1 and September 30, according to the Order of June 5, 2026, which determines the high-risk period for fires during the year 2026, published in DOG no. 108, of June 11. The extension therefore adds two more weeks of validity to the period of maximum alert.

What the declaration of high risk entails

Article 9 of Law 3/2007, of April 9, on the prevention and defense against forest fires in Galicia, establishes that the department with forestry competencies defines the high-risk period, which «will condition the intensity of the measures to be adopted for the defense of the territory of Galicia». The same precept attributes the fixing of the corresponding dates to the department.

The declaration is based, according to the law itself, on precedents and historical data regarding the risk of fire occurrence in Galicia and the incidence of meteorological variables on fire behavior. The resolution does not detail in its text the specific measures being activated, which are those provided for within the general framework of the regulations for the prevention and defense against forest fires.

Competence to modify the dates

The Order of June 5, 2026, includes an express authorization in its first final provision: it empowers the general director of Forest Defense to issue whatever instructions are necessary to modify the dates and declare other times of the year as high risk when meteorological conditions or other circumstances aggravate the risk of fires.

It is this authorization that supports the now-published resolution, which does not require a new order from the department. The document bears the signature of Manuel Francisco Gutiérrez, general director of Forest Defense, and is dated in Santiago de Compostela on September 22, 2026, two days before its publication in the official bulletin.

Key dates of the decision

• July 1, 2026: start of the high-danger season established by the Order of June 5.
• September 30, 2026: initially planned end.
• October 1 to 15, 2026: period added by the new resolution.
• September 22, 2026: date of the resolution and its signature.
• September 24, 2026: publication in the DOG no. 182, p. 50190.

The extension maintains the maximum alert framework throughout the Galician territory for two more weeks, just as the ordinary period of highest risk was ending. For the Galician countryside, the validity of the high-danger season is decisive, as it is the framework that determines the intensity of the territory’s defense measures and the obligations associated with fire prevention.

Source: Official Gazette of Galicia (DOG), no. 182, September 24, 2026, section III. Other provisions, p. 50190 (official reference: i4zozos5-rlq3-isz5-k2y4-bfeqgi2kmqo5).