Wildfires scorch 30,000 more hectares in Spain

MADRID – Raging wildfires tore through an additional 30,000ha of western Spain in less than 24 hours, satellite data showed on Aug 19, but cooler temperatures have raised hopes of containment.

About 373,000ha have been scorched in Spain in 2025 as at 9am local time (3pm Singapore time) on Aug 19, according to the European Forest Fire Information System.

That marks the country’s worst fire season since records began in 2006, surpassing 2022, when 306,000ha were consumed by flames.

The bulk of the devastation has come from

massive fires that have been burning

for more than a week in the north-western provinces of Zamora and Leon, Galicia’s Ourense province and Caceres in the western region of Extremadura. The authorities have evacuated thousands of residents from dozens of villages.

Several major roads are closed, and rail services between Madrid and Galicia have been suspended.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was expected to visit areas hit by fire in Zamora and Caceres on Aug 19.

While officials warned that the blazes remain far from extinguished, the end of a 16-day heatwave has improved conditions for firefighters. Maximum temperatures have dropped by 10 deg C to 12 deg C and humidity levels have risen, said Mr Nicanor Sen, the central government’s representative in Castile and Leon.

“These changes are facilitating and improving the conditions to gain control of the fires,” he told public broadcaster TVE. AFP