4 Dead in Wildfires in Southern Europe

Quelle: VIDEOELEPHANT (Glomex)

So far, four people have died in Spain, while Southern Europe continues to battle the worst wildfires on record, with temperatures reaching up to 45 °C. 1,900 soldiers have been deployed to fight the wildfires in Spain. A firefighter died after his fire truck plunged down a steep slope, as reported by the Castile and León regional government. Multiple fires are still raging in the northwest and west of Spain, with 27,000 residents evacuated from their homes. A fire in the western province of Cáceres remains uncontrolled and has destroyed 27,181 hectares of land. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez warns that the fires are far from over. "We still have some difficult days ahead, and unfortunately, the weather is not on our side," Sánchez said on Sunday at a press conference in Ourense. Sánchez also proposed a "major state agreement" to prepare the country for climate-related events, stating, "We are all part of the same state and must all work in the same direction." Castile and León is the most affected region. Local radio station Radio 5 reports that the air has become "unbreathable" due to the fire's smoke. The heatwave has triggered around 20 wildfires. According to the European Forest Fire Information System, an estimated 851,000 hectares of land have burned in Spain this year. Additionally, in the neighboring country of Portugal, a firefighter died in a "tragic" traffic accident, as announced by the country's President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.