Spain wildfires: Urgent warning with 'extreme danger' in tourist hotspots

Holidaymakers in Spain have been issued with an extreme wildfire warning with the alert stretching across tourist hotspots.

It comes after crippling heatwave temperatures caused fires to appear in parts of the country. On Sunday, forecasters listed a high of 45.8C in the port city of Cádiz in Andalusia, southwestern Spain.

Weather agency Aemet said there is “very high or extreme fire danger” for most parts of the country. The agency warned locals to be careful due to the ongoing chaos.

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“Although the heatwave is starting to subside, very high temperatures will still be reached today in the east and south of the peninsula,” it said. “Be cautious.”

Officials confirmed that 31,130 people have been evacuated from their homes in recent days. On Sunday, a total of 1,400 soldiers were on the ground before the government deployed an additional 500.

Sadly, the wildfires are still causing havoc across the country, as well as similar scenes being reported in neighbouring Portugal. Two fire fighters were killed on Sunday, one in Spain and one in Portugal.

Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro stressed that his country has endured 24 days of “unprecedented severity". He said: "We are at war, and we must triumph in this fight." The wildfires have now entered the second week of mayhem, with an impact being felt in the western regions of Castile and Leon, Galicia, and Extremadura.

However, forecasters have shared that things could be on the up, with temperatures expected to finally drop from now until Thursday. Meteorologist Francisco Martín León said: "The drop in temperatures, as well as some rainfall in Asturias, Galicia, Cantabria and even the north of León, will benefit the extinguishing of the westernmost fires."

Spain's Defence Minister Margarita Robles told Cadena SER radio: "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."

Red heat warnings remain in place in Alicante and Murcia. Other tourist destinations have received lesser warnings, but can expect intense heat. On Tuesday, Aemet said: “A significant drop in temperatures will occur in the southeastern and eastern parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

“However, temperatures will remain significantly high in parts of the Mediterranean peninsula, the Balearic Islands, and the Canary Islands. Showers and thunderstorms will be locally heavy with very strong gusts in the Pyrenees, the eastern Iberian Peninsula, and areas in between.”