Spain, Portugal, and Greece battle wildfires as heatwave is expected to last for days
MADRID — Firefighters in Spain, Portugal and Greece continued to battle wildfires Friday on a public holiday in all three countries as persistent hot, dry conditions challenged efforts to contain the blazes.
Spain was fighting 14 major fires. Temperatures were expected to climb over the weekend.
'Today will once again be a very tough day, with an extreme risk of new fires,' Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on X.
The national weather agency AEMET warned of extreme fire risk in most of the country, including where the largest blazes were burning in the north and west. A heatwave which brought temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) on several days this month was expected to last through Monday.
Fires in the Galicia region forced the closure of several highways. The high speed rail line connecting it to Spain's capital, Madrid, remained suspended.
The fires in Spain this year have burned 158,000 hectares or 610 square miles, according to the European Union's European Forest Fire Information System. That is an area roughly as big as metropolitan London.
In both Spain and Portugal it was the Feast of the Assumption, a major Catholic holiday usually marked by family gatherings and religious processions.
In Portugal, nearly 4,000 firefighters were battling seven major fires. Authorities extended the state of alert until Sunday, amid high temperatures expected to last through the weekend.
A wildfire in Greece burned out of control for a fourth day on the island of Chios, prompting several more overnight evacuations.
Two water-dropping planes and two helicopters were operating in the north of the island in the eastern Aegean Sea, where local authorities said a lull in high winds was helping firefighters early Friday.
Following a series of large fires in western Greece earlier this week, the Fire Service was on alert Friday outside Athens and nearby areas in the south of the country where adverse weather conditions elevated the fire risk.
The spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew expressed solidarity on Friday with the victims of wildfires in southern Europe during prayers for the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, an important religious holiday for Orthodox Christians.
___
Suman Naishadham, The Associated Press
AP writer Derek Gatopoulos contributed from Athens.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
6 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Spain deploys 500 more troops to battle wildfires during extended heat wave
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Spain is deploying a further 500 soldiers to battle wildfires that have torn through parched woodland during a prolonged spell of scorching weather, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Sunday. The decision to add to the more than 1,400 troops already on wildfire duty came as authorities struggled to contain forest blazes, especially in the northwestern Galicia region, and awaited the arrival of promised aircraft reinforcements from other European countries.
CTV News
13 hours ago
- CTV News
Evacuation orders, alerts lifted as wildfire north of Nanaimo declared under control
A road crew awaits a potential closure along highway 4 as the Wesley Ridge wildfire burns out-of-control at Cameron Lake near Coombs, B.C., Sunday, Aug. 3, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito A wildfire burning north of Nanaimo that had forced hundreds to evacuate is now under control. The BC Wildfire Service announced Saturday afternoon that crews have made significant progress in combating the Wesley Ridge blaze burning near Cameron Lake. The wildfire service says firefighters are still in the area patrolling and extinguishing hot spots. The Regional District of Nanaimo says it is pleased residents can return home. The fire scorched nearly six square kilometres of land and was previously listed as held. There are 75 wildfires currently burning in British Columbia, four of which are out of control. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2025.
Globe and Mail
13 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Spain deploys 500 more troops to fight wildfires as heatwave drags on
Spain is deploying a further 500 soldiers to battle wildfires that have torn through parched woodland during a prolonged spell of scorching weather, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Sunday. The decision to add to the more than 1,400 troops already on wildfire duty came as authorities struggled to contain forest blazes, especially in the northwestern Galicia region, and awaited the arrival of promised aircraft reinforcements from other European countries. Firefighters are tackling 12 major wildfires in Galicia, all of them near the city of Ourense, the head of the Galician regional government Alfonso Rueda told a press conference with Sánchez. 'Homes are still under threat so we have lockdowns in place and are carrying out evacuations,' Rueda said. Galicia has been battling the spreading flames for more than a week. Temperatures in Spain could reach 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in some areas on Sunday, the Spanish national weather agency AEMET said. On Saturday, the maximum temperature was 44.7 degrees Celsius (112.46 degrees Fahrenheit) in the southern city of Cordoba, it said. 'This Sunday, when extraordinarily high temperatures are expected, the danger of wildfires is extreme in most of the country,' AEMET said on the social platform X. The fires in Spain this year have burned 158,000 hectares (390,000 acres), according to the European Union's European Forest Fire Information System. That is an area roughly as big as metropolitan London. Heat waves expected to drag on as Spain, Portugal, and Greece battle wildfires Europe has been warming twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Scientists say that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness in parts of Europe, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. Spain was expecting the arrival of two Dutch water-dumping planes that were to join aircraft from France and Italy already helping Spanish authorities under a European cooperation agreement. Firefighters from other countries are also expected to arrive in the region in coming days, Spain's Civil Protection Agency chief Virginia Barcones told public broadcaster RTVE. National rail operator Renfe said it suspended Madrid-Galicia high-speed train services scheduled for Sunday due to the fires. Galician authorities advised people to wear face masks and limit their time spent outdoors to avoid inhaling smoke and ash. Wildfires across southern Europe force evacuations and kill firefighters Portugal is set for cooler weather in coming days after a spate of severe woodland fires. A national state of alert due to wildfires was enacted Aug. 2 and was due to end Sunday, a day before two Swedish firefighting planes were to arrive. As in Spain, Portugal's resources have been stretched. On Sunday, more than 4,000 firefighters and more than 1,300 vehicles were deployed, as well as 17 aircraft, the country's Civil Protection Agency said. The scorched area of forest in Portugal so far this year is 17 times higher than in 2024, at around 139,000 hectares, according to preliminary calculations by the Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests, a government body. Greece, Bulgaria, Montenegro and Albania have also requested help from the EU's firefighting force in recent days to deal with forest fires. The force has already been activated as many times this year as in all of last year's summer fire season. U.S. Republicans demand that Canada deal with wildfires – but won't acknowledge climate change In Turkey, where recent wildfires have killed 19 people, parts of the historic region that includes memorials to World War I's Gallipoli campaign were evacuated Sunday as blazes threatened homes in the country's northwest. Six villages were evacuated as a precautionary measure, the governor of Canakkale province, Omer Toraman, said. Some 1,300 firefighting personnel backed by 30 aircraft were battling the blaze, according to the General Directorate of Forestry. A wildfire on the peninsula to the north of the Dardanelles Strait led to the closure of visitor facilities at Gallipoli, the site's management said. The area is dotted with cemeteries, memorials and other remnants of battles waged between Ottoman and Allied troops in 1915. Turkey has been struck by hundreds of fires since late June, fueled by record-breaking temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds.
