The European Commission has set up a new PreparEU Advisory Group to advise President Ursula von der Leyen and Commissioner Hadja Lahbib on disaster preparedness, including risks linked to extreme weather and wildfires.
The group will include 17 members from different EU countries — 11 senior experts in civil protection and crisis management and six scientists and academics — after being announced by von der Leyen in her State of the Union speech on 16 September 2026, the Commission informed in a statement on Friday.
It will review existing national capacities under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and rescEU, two EU frameworks used to coordinate assistance and pool resources during emergencies.
The advisory group is expected to consider the impacts of natural hazards such as extreme weather and wildfires, as well as technological and other emerging risks, and how these could affect issues including emergency health, shelter, communications and disruption to critical infrastructure.
It will also discuss potential new capabilities, including “dual use” assets and a possible European Firefighting Fleet.
Wildfires and cross-border deployments
The group is due to meet for the first time in early November 2026 and present recommendations by spring 2027, with a secretariat based in Brussels under the Commission’s Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations.
Von der Leyen stated that the Commission was bringing together experienced firefighters and emergency responders to develop proposals on areas including civil-military coordination, equipment and capabilities.
Wildfires led to the EU Civil Protection Mechanism being activated 10 times within Europe over the summer and twice outside Europe, with 41 aerial firefighting assets and 18 ground firefighting teams deployed, the Commission said.
Over 686,000 hectares were burnt and around 12 million tonnes of crops were lost over the summer.
Lahbib said the advisory group would deliver recommendations, including on a possible European Firefighting Fleet.
