Twelve people have been confirmed dead in one of Spain's deadliest wildfires, with eight people injured and 23 still missing. The fire, among the deadliest in the country's history, broke out late on Thursday near Almería, in Spain's southern Andalusia region.
The country's intense heatwave, with temperatures reaching 40°C, and strong winds, around 50 kilometres per hour, fuelled the rapid spread of the flames. The fire has burned around 4,000 hectares, spreading 15 kilometres in just two hours.
As of Saturday morning, the wildfire remains active and out of control, with more than 500 emergency personnel and 32 aircraft deployed to fight the blaze. More than 1,400 people have been evacuated from nearby communities, including areas around Bédar, while crews continue efforts to contain the fire and search affected areas.
Around 150 firefighters, 220 soldiers and 70 personnel from the Second Intervention Battalion of the Military Emergency Unit continued efforts to contain the blaze. Firefighters faced difficult conditions as strong winds and dry vegetation hampered operations.
Most of the victims died after failing to follow shelter-in-place instructions, said the head of Andalusia’s emergency services, Antonio Sanz. Some tried to escape via a dry riverbed that “turned into a death trap”, he added.
Four victims are believed to be British nationals after authorities retrieved a burnt car with the steering wheel on the right-hand side. Other nationalities are believed to be among the dead, local authorities said, without specifying which. The death toll could rise, they added.
As authorities searched for the missing, anxious relatives from around the world shared appeals and messages on social media and local forums.
Authorities are investigating the cause, with early indications pointing to a fallen electricity cable or power-line failure.
The Almería wildfire comes as several other European countries battle major blazes amid a summer of extreme heat and dry conditions. In France, firefighters were tackling a wildfire in the Drôme region that had burned more than 3,500 hectares after spreading rapidly in early July. In Portugal, authorities deployed more than 1,200 firefighters to a blaze near in the central Viseu district, which scorched about 12,000 hectares in three days. Greece also faced fires, including one near Thessaloniki early July, while authorities warned of dangerous conditions caused by heat and dry vegetation.
