Spain declares first national wildfire emergency as evacuations surge

Spain declared its first national wildfire emergency on July 24 as flames near Madrid and in Ávila forced more than 10,000 people to evacuate. A man also died in a wildfire near Valencia the same day, underscoring how quickly the fire crisis had spread across the country.

Authorities were evacuating more than 47 villages and towns in central and western Spain as the fire front widened. Firefighters in eastern Spain worked to hold back a worsening blaze while communities in the capital region and the neighboring province of Ávila faced growing pressure from fast-moving fires.

The emergency did not stop at Spain’s border. Thousands of people fled wildfires in southwest France as tinder-box conditions persisted, and the French government sought emergency assistance from the European Union. Parts of France faced temperatures above 40C, exceptionally warm nights and widespread wildfire risk, adding strain to evacuation planners and firefighting crews.

The fires were part of a broader wave across Southern Europe, where Spain, France and Italy were all battling wildfires fueled by extreme heat. Climate change has been increasing the frequency and severity of European wildfires, making late-summer heat waves more dangerous and helping new ignitions spread faster than crews can contain them.