Spain’s government has declared a national emergency over severe wildfires in the capital Madrid and the province of Avila, as the blazes spread rapidly late Thursday night and became increasingly difficult to contain.
Military emergency units have been deployed to help control the fires and carry out rapid rescue operations. More than 10,000 people have so far been evacuated to safer locations in the Madrid region.
Early Thursday morning, around 3,500 residents of Aldea del Fresno, a town located about 60 kilometers from Madrid, were ordered to leave the area.
In Avila province, residents of Burgohondo, El Tiemblo and Navaluenga have been instructed to remain indoors as the fires have gone out of control.
In addition, another 1,500 people have been evacuated from a tourist site and a housing development in El Tiemblo.
The country’s largest wildfire has spread across the province of Guadalajara, located about 100 kilometers north of Madrid. The blaze, which started last Thursday, has so far burned nearly 32,000 hectares of land.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the government is using all available resources to bring the wildfires under control. He also urged people to remain vigilant and follow instructions from authorities.
According to data from the European Forest Fire Information System, around 125,000 hectares of forest in Spain have been affected by wildfires so far this year. Last year, a total of 393,000 hectares were affected by fires.
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