Forest fires raged across Spain and Portugal as a record zone of burnt terrain | Climatic news

Thousands of firefighters, supported by soldiers and water bombing planes, fought against more than 20 major forest fires raging in western Spain, where those responsible say that a record field area has already been burned.

Spain and neighboring Portugal have been particularly affected by forest fires stimulated by heat waves and drought, attributed to climate change, which hit southern Europe.

Two firefighters were killed on Sunday – one in each country, both in road accidents, which killed the number of deaths in Portugal and four in Spain.

The head of civil protection of Spain, Virginia Barcones, said on public television that 23 flames were classified as “level two operational”, which means that they constitute a direct threat to neighboring communities.

The fires, now entering their second week, are concentrated in the western regions of Castile and Leon, Galicia and the end, where thousands of people were forced to flee their homes.

More than 343,000 hectares (848,000 acres) of land – the equivalent of almost half a million football fields – have been destroyed this year in Spain, establishing a new national record, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFPIS).

The previous 306,000 hectare record (756,142 acres) was established the same period three years ago.

Abroad

Spain is helped with fire-fighting planes in France, Italy, Slovakia and the Netherlands, while Portugal receives air support from Sweden and Morocco.

However, the size and severity of the fires and the intensity of the smoke made the “aerial action” difficult, said Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles, told Tve.

On the other side of the border in Portugal, around 2,000 firefighters were deployed in the north and the center of the country on Monday, with about half of them concentrated in the city of Arganil.

About 216,000 hectares (533,747 acres) have been destroyed across Portugal since the start of the year.

Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said that the country had endured 24 days of “unprecedented gravity” weather conditions, with high temperatures and strong winds.

“We are at war and we have to triumph in this fight,” he added.

Officials from the two countries have expressed the hope that time would turn to help fight fires.

The Spanish meteorological agency said that the heat wave, which has seen temperatures reach 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in certain parts of the country, was coming to an end.