Latest news with #Suarez-Quinones
Express Tribune
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Express Tribune
European heatwave sets records
A firefighting plane works to extinguish a wildfire on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Canakkale, Turkey. Photo: REUTERS A young boy died of heatstroke in Italy while wildfires threatened a UNESCO site in Spain and French cities saw record temperatures, as a heatwave baked Europe on Monday. The four-year-old Romanian boy died days after being found unconscious in the family's car in Sardinia. The boy was airlifted to a Rome hospital but died of irreversible brain damage, the hospital told AFP on Monday. The news came as Italy's health ministry issued a red alert warning for seven major cities, including Bologna and Florence. Some 11 Italian cities are on red alert for Tuesday, and 16 cities on Wednesday, while around 190 firefighters and the army continue to tackle a wildfire on Mount Vesuvius that caused the closure of the national park to tourists. Wildfires damaged a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site in northwestern Spain and forced evacuations in three Balkan countries as high temperatures fanned by strong winds left parts of Europe in flames. Spanish firefighters struggled to contain a wildfire that damaged a Roman-era mining site in Las Medulas and prompted hundreds of residents to evacuate. High temperatures and winds of up to 40 kilometres per hour (25 mph) created "many difficulties", said Juan Carlos Suarez-Quinones, the Castile and Leon regional environment minister. "We will not allow people to return until safety in their communities is absolutely guaranteed," he told reporters, estimating that about 700 people had been displaced. Four people, including two firefighters, suffered minor injuries, he added. The blaze broke out on Sunday near the Las Medulas area famed for its striking red landscape. Spain has been in the grip of a heatwave for the past week, with temperatures nearing 40C in many areas and fuelling wildfires. Castile and Leon alone has seen 13 fires in the past three days, according to Suarez-Quinones, who said that some were believed to have been deliberately started.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Child dies in Italy as European heatwave sets records and sparks wildfires
A young boy died of heatstroke in Italy while wildfires threatened a UNESCO site in Spain and French cites saw record temperatures, as a heatwave baked Europe on Monday. The four-year-old Romanian boy died days after being found unconscious in the family's car in Sardinia. The boy was airlifted to a Rome hospital but died of irreversible brain damage, the hospital told AFP on Monday. The news came as Italy's health ministry issued a red alert warning for seven major cities, including Bologna and Florence. Some 11 Italian cities are on red alert for Tuesday, and 16 cities on Wednesday, while around 190 firefighters and the army continue to tackle a wildfire on Mount Vesuvius that caused the closure of the national park to tourists. - UNESCO site damaged - Wildfires damaged a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site in northwestern Spain and forced evacuations in three Balkan countries as high temperatures fanned by strong winds left parts of Europe in flames. Spanish firefighters struggled to contain a wildfire that damaged a Roman-era mining site in Las Medulas and prompted hundreds of residents to evacuate. High temperatures and winds of up to 40 kilometres per hour (25 mph) created "many difficulties", said Juan Carlos Suarez-Quinones, the Castile and Leon regional environment minister. "We will not allow people to return until safety in their communities is absolutely guaranteed," he told reporters, estimating that about 700 people had been displaced. Four people, including two firefighters, suffered minor injuries, he added. The blaze broke out on Sunday near Las Medulas, an area famed for its striking red landscape. Spain has been in the grip of a heatwave for the past week, with temperatures nearing 40C in many areas and fuelling wildfires. Castile and Leon alone has seen 13 fires in the past three days, according to Suarez-Quinones, who said that some were believed to have been deliberately started. In neighbouring Portugal, firefighters were battling three large wildfires in the centre and north of the country. - 20 arrested in Albania - People were evacuated from dozens of homes in the Balkans as firefighters battled blazes in Albania, Montenegro and Croatia, where red alerts were announced. In Albania, hundreds of firefighters and soldiers had subdued most of the nearly 40 fires that flared up in the last 24 hours, according to the defence ministry, but more than a dozen were still active. Fires continued to burn in the southern coastal area of Finiq, around 160 kilometres south of the capital, where about 10 people were evacuated and several homes were razed on Sunday night, according to local media. Since the start of July, nearly 34,000 hectares (84,000 acres) have been scorched nationwide, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). Police allege that many of the blazes were deliberately lit, with more than 20 people arrested in recent weeks. Just outside the capital of neighbouring Montenegro, where temperatures soared to 40C, fire crews managed to save dozens of homes when a blaze broke out in inaccessible terrain on Monday, the commander of the Protection and Rescue Service, Nikola Bojanovic, told media. In Croatia, around 150 firefighters also spent the night defending homes from a blaze near the port city of Split. In the northwestern Turkish province of Canakkale, more than 2,000 people were evacuated and 77 people received hospital treatment for smoke inhalation after several fires broke out around the tourist village of Guzelyali, authorities said. Several homes and cars caught ablaze, according to images shown on Turkish media, while more than 760 firefighters, 10 aeroplanes, nine helicopters and more than 200 vehicles were deployed to battle the flames. Turkey had just experienced its hottest July since records began 55 years ago. - French records - Temperature records were broken in at least four weather stations in southern France, as the government called for vigilance. The southwestern city of Bordeaux hit a record 41.6C while all-time records were also broken at meteorological stations in Bergerac, Cognac and Saint Girons, according to the national weather service, Meteo France. The heatwave, the country's second this summer, began on Friday and was forecast to last possibly until August 19 or 20. On Monday, 12 French departments were placed on red alert, the country's highest heat warning, with four more expected on Tuesday. bur-bc/rmb
Int'l Business Times
14 hours ago
- Climate
- Int'l Business Times
Child Dies In Italy As European Heatwave Sets Records And Sparks Wildfires
A young boy died of heatstroke in Italy while wildfires threatened a UNESCO site in Spain and French cites saw record temperatures, as a heatwave baked Europe on Monday. The four-year-old Romanian boy died days after being found unconscious in the family's car in Sardinia. The boy was airlifted to a Rome hospital but died of irreversible brain damage, the hospital told AFP on Monday. The news came as Italy's health ministry issued a red alert warning for seven major cities, including Bologna and Florence. Some 11 Italian cities are on red alert for Tuesday, and 16 cities on Wednesday, while around 190 firefighters and the army continue to tackle a wildfire on Mount Vesuvius that caused the closure of the national park to tourists. Wildfires damaged a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site in northwestern Spain and forced evacuations in three Balkan countries as high temperatures fanned by strong winds left parts of Europe in flames. Spanish firefighters struggled to contain a wildfire that damaged a Roman-era mining site in Las Medulas and prompted hundreds of residents to evacuate. High temperatures and winds of up to 40 kilometres per hour (25 mph) created "many difficulties", said Juan Carlos Suarez-Quinones, the Castile and Leon regional environment minister. "We will not allow people to return until safety in their communities is absolutely guaranteed," he told reporters, estimating that about 700 people had been displaced. Four people, including two firefighters, suffered minor injuries, he added. The blaze broke out on Sunday near Las Medulas, an area famed for its striking red landscape. Spain has been in the grip of a heatwave for the past week, with temperatures nearing 40C in many areas and fuelling wildfires. Castile and Leon alone has seen 13 fires in the past three days, according to Suarez-Quinones, who said that some were believed to have been deliberately started. In neighbouring Portugal, firefighters were battling three large wildfires in the centre and north of the country. People were evacuated from dozens of homes in the Balkans as firefighters battled blazes in Albania, Montenegro and Croatia, where red alerts were announced. In Albania, hundreds of firefighters and soldiers had subdued most of the nearly 40 fires that flared up in the last 24 hours, according to the defence ministry, but more than a dozen were still active. Fires continued to burn in the southern coastal area of Finiq, around 160 kilometres south of the capital, where about 10 people were evacuated and several homes were razed on Sunday night, according to local media. Since the start of July, nearly 34,000 hectares (84,000 acres) have been scorched nationwide, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). Police allege that many of the blazes were deliberately lit, with more than 20 people arrested in recent weeks. Just outside the capital of neighbouring Montenegro, where temperatures soared to 40C, fire crews managed to save dozens of homes when a blaze broke out in inaccessible terrain on Monday, the commander of the Protection and Rescue Service, Nikola Bojanovic, told media. In Croatia, around 150 firefighters also spent the night defending homes from a blaze near the port city of Split. In the northwestern Turkish province of Canakkale, more than 2,000 people were evacuated and 77 people received hospital treatment for smoke inhalation after several fires broke out around the tourist village of Guzelyali, authorities said. Several homes and cars caught ablaze, according to images shown on Turkish media, while more than 760 firefighters, 10 aeroplanes, nine helicopters and more than 200 vehicles were deployed to battle the flames. Turkey had just experienced its hottest July since records began 55 years ago. Temperature records were broken in at least four weather stations in southern France, as the government called for vigilance. The southwestern city of Bordeaux hit a record 41.6C while all-time records were also broken at meteorological stations in Bergerac, Cognac and Saint Girons, according to the national weather service, Meteo France. The heatwave, the country's second this summer, began on Friday and was forecast to last possibly until August 19 or 20. On Monday, 12 French departments were placed on red alert, the country's highest heat warning, with four more expected on Tuesday. Spanish firefighters struggled to contain a wildfire that damaged the Las Medulas Roman-era mining site and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate AFP The blaze broke out on Sunday near the Las Medulas Roman gold-mining area famed for its striking red landscape AFP Around 190 firefighters and the army tackled a wildfire on Mount Vesuvius that forced the closure of the national park to tourists AFP
Dubai Eye
15 hours ago
- Climate
- Dubai Eye
Firefighters battle 'fire whirls' in northern Spain
Photo by HANDOUT / UME / AFP Extreme heat and strong winds caused "fire whirls" as a blaze burned several houses and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from near a UNESCO-listed national park in northern Spain, authorities said on Monday. Thirteen fires broke out in the north of the Castile and Leon region, with about 700 people told to abandon their homes in half a dozen villages. Four fires were still live, Juan Carlos Suarez-Quinones, chief of environment for the regional government, said on Monday morning. Firefighters had extinguished the other nine. High temperatures on Sunday had caused the so-called fire whirls near Las Medulas park, forcing firemen to retreat and burning some houses in the nearby village, according to Suarez-Quinones. "This occurs when temperatures reach around 40 degrees Celsius in a very confined valley and then suddenly (the fire) enters a more open and oxygenated area. This produces a fireball, a fire whirl," he said. "This explosive and surprising phenomenon was very dangerous. It disrupted all the work that had been done, forcing us to start practically from scratch," he added. Scientists say the Mediterranean region's hotter, drier summers put it at high risk of wildfires. Once fires start, dry vegetation and strong winds can cause them to spread rapidly and burn out of control, sometimes provoking fire whirls. A prolonged heatwave in Spain continued on Monday with temperatures set to reach 42 C in some regions. Two or three fires may have been started by lightning strikes, Suarez-Quinones said, but there were indications that the majority were the result of arson, which he described as "environmental terrorism". In the northern part of neighbouring Portugal, nearly 700 firefighters were battling a blaze that started on Saturday in Trancoso, some 350 km northeast of Lisbon. So far this year about 52,000 hectares, or 0.6 per cent of Portugal's total area, have burned, exceeding the 2006-2024 average for the same period by about 10,000 hectares, according to the European Forest Fire Information System. Firefighters were also battling blazes in Navarra in northeastern Spain and in Huelva in the southwest, authorities said.
RTHK
17 hours ago
- Climate
- RTHK
Europe heatwave fuels Spanish wildfires
Europe heatwave fuels Spanish wildfires Firefighters try to contain a wildfire outside Congosta, northern Spain. Photo: Reuters Extreme heat and strong winds caused "fire whirls" as a blaze burned several houses and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from near a Unesco-listed national park in northern Spain, authorities said on Monday. Thirteen fires broke out in the north of the Castile and Leon region, with about 700 people told to abandon their homes in half a dozen villages. Four fires were still live, Juan Carlos Suarez-Quinones, chief of environment for the regional government, said on Monday morning. Firefighters had extinguished the other nine. High temperatures on Sunday had caused the so-called fire whirls near Las Medulas park, forcing firemen to retreat and burning some houses in the nearby village, according to Suarez-Quinones. "This occurs when temperatures reach around 40 degrees Celsius in a very confined valley and then suddenly (the fire) enters a more open and oxygenated area. This produces a fireball, a fire whirl," he said. Scientists say the Mediterranean region's hotter, drier summers put it at high risk of wildfires. Once fires start, dry vegetation and strong winds can cause them to spread rapidly and burn out of control, sometimes provoking fire whirls. A prolonged heatwave in Spain continued on Monday with temperatures set to reach 42C in some regions. The heatwave gripping parts of Europe sent temperatures up to 43C in southern France, increasing risks of wildfires in wine country. The French national weather authority, Météo-France, placed 12 departments on red alert, the country's highest heat warning, anticipating exceptional heat stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Mediterranean plains. Forty-one other departments were under lower-level orange alerts, as was the neighbouring microstate of Andorra, between France and Spain. 'Don't be fooled – this isn't 'normal, it's summer.' It's not normal, it's a nightmare,' agricultural climatologist Serge Zaka, told BFMTV from Montauban in France's Tarn-et-Garonne department, where the blistering heat pressed relentlessly throughout the day. Social media images showed shuttered streets in Valence, residents shielding windows with foil to reflect the light, and tourists huddling under umbrellas along the Garonne in Toulouse. Across the south, café terraces stood empty as people sought cooler corners indoors. Scientists say Europe is becoming the world's fastest-warming continent. According to the UK-based Carbon Brief, 2025 is predicted to be the second- or third-warmest year on record. Europe's land temperatures have risen about 2.3C above pre-industrial levels, nearly twice the global rate, intensifying heat waves, the EU's Copernicus climate service reports. EU data show burned area across the continent is already far above the long-term average this summer, with major outbreaks in Spain, Portugal and deadly blazes in Greece since late June. (Reuters/AP)
