As wildfires blazed in southern Italy this week, authorities probing for arson found a grisly clue: cats “with flammable-soaked rags tied to their tails.”
“These animals were released into the fields, running around and spreading the fire,” said Domenico Costarella of Calabria’s Civil Protection Agency in a video posted on Facebook on Tuesday. He added that other pieces of evidence also pointed to arson, including candles lit among flammable rags and delayed ignition devices.
Firefighters are still working to contain blazes around Calabria’s Pollino National Park, according to Italian broadcaster RAI, which reported Wednesday that firefighting teams have completed more than 160 missions within Calabria in the past 24 hours.
According to CNN’s Italian affiliate SkyTG24, the Italian Association for the Defense of Animals and the Environment has filed a criminal complaint and offered a 1,000 euro reward for information on who may have set the cats alight.
Europe has been consumed by a nasty fire season this year, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). A wet winter provided new vegetation, much of which became tinder for fires after three successive summer heatwaves. While 2026 has been a better year for fires in Europe overall, the continent’s fire season is still above the 20-year average, EFFIS said in a daily bulletin.
