Spain battles 20 big wildfires, deploys extra 500 soldiers

Spain has deployed a further 500 soldiers from the military emergency unit to support firefighting operations as it battles 20 major wildfires across the country during a heatwave that began last week. “There are still some challenging days ahead, and unfortunately, the weather is not on our side,” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said at a news conference on Sunday in Ourense, one of the most affected areas, in northwestern Spain.He announced an increase in military reinforcements, bringing the total number of soldiers deployed across Spain to 1,900.

MASSIVE wildfires tear through Spain’s El Bierzo

Hills completely ENGULFED in FLAMES

Thick smoke blankets the area pic.twitter.com/BF9jLiRlij

— RT (@RT_com) August 17, 2025

Firefighters are tackling 12 major wildfires in the northwestern region of Galicia alone, all of them near the city of Ourense, the head of the Galician regional government Alfonso Rueda also said during the news conference. “Homes are still under threat, so we have lockdowns in place and are carrying out evacuations,” Rueda said. The announcements came as authorities awaited the arrival of promised aircraft reinforcements from other European countries.

National rail operator Renfe said it suspended Madrid-Galicia high-speed train services scheduled for Sunday due to the fires.Galician authorities advised people to wear face masks and limit their time spent outdoors to avoid inhaling smoke and ash.

Southern Europe is experiencing one of its worst wildfire seasons in two decades with Spain among the hardest-hit countries. In the past week alone, fires there have killed three people and burned more than 1,150sq km (445sq miles) while neighbouring Portugal also battles widespread blazes  While Southern Europe lived through wildfires, droughts and heatwaves long before humans started to change the climate by burning fossil fuels, hotter global temperatures can supercharge some of the conditions for these types of extreme weather, according to climate scientists. Greece, Bulgaria, Montenegro and Albania have also requested help from the EU's firefighting force in recent days.Thousands of firefighters are also battling eight large blazes in central and northern Portugal, the largest of them near the mountainous area of Piodao.