Wildfires in Spain and Portugal have claimed the lives of two firefighters, increasing the death toll in neighbouring countries.
According to France24, the authorities on Monday, August 18, said that two firefighters were killed in Spain and Portugal as the wildfire spread across the Iberian Peninsula. Both of the firefighters died in road accidents.
After the recent casualties, the death toll has risen to two in Portugal and four in Spain as the devastating fire continues to rage in European countries amid sweltering heatwaves.
The regional government in Castile and Leon, northwestern Spain, said in a post on X that a firefighter died when his truck overturned on a steep forest road, adding, “For an unknown reason, the vehicle approached the embankment and overturned, falling down a steep slope.”
As per the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), blazes have destroyed more than 70,000 hectares of land.
Defence Minister Margarita Robles told radio station Cadena SER, “This is a fire situation we haven't experienced in 20 years. The fires have special characteristics as a result of climate change and this huge heatwave."
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also vowed a “national pact” to address the climate change emergency after one of the impacted areas.
Meanwhile, in Portugal, nearly 185,000 hectares of land have been destroyed due to wildfires since the beginning of the year. The provisional data from the country's forestry institute revealed that the damages have already exceeded last year's 136,000 hectares of destruction.
