Heatwave and Massive Fires in Spain .. Authorities Request Support from the European Union

In the face of an escalating environmental disaster, the Spanish government announced yesterday evening, Wednesday, the activation of the European civil protection mechanism, and officially requested assistance from the European Union to participate in extinguishing the wave of violent wildfires sweeping across various parts of the country, especially in the north.

Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said in an interview with Cadena SER radio:

"We submitted an official request to the European Union this evening, requesting a support unit that includes two specialized firefighting aircraft."

This urgent request comes after authorities were forced to evacuate about six thousand people from 26 villages threatened by flames.

Spain is currently experiencing 14 major fires, amidst suffocating temperatures that have exacerbated the situation, as a severe heatwave sweeps across large areas of Europe, particularly the Iberian Peninsula, leading to dozens of fires with varying degrees of severity.

Weather authorities in Spain have issued warnings that the current heatwave will continue until next Monday, and similar red alerts have been issued in Italy, France, Portugal, and the Balkans.

In a horrific tragedy, a man died on Monday night-Tuesday in the town of Tres Cantos north of Madrid, as a massive fire consumed more than 1,500 hectares of forest just 25 kilometers from the capital.

Another man, aged 35, lost his life while participating in efforts to extinguish a fire in the León region in the northwest of the country, while another person aged 36 suffered severe burns and was taken to the hospital.

Commenting on the severity of the situation, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on the platform X (formerly Twitter):

"We are facing a severe danger due to the wildfires raging across the country."

To confront the disaster, about a thousand soldiers from the military emergency unit specialized in dealing with natural disasters have been mobilized.

In the south of the country, the famous tourist city of Tarifa in the Andalusia region narrowly escaped a disaster on Monday evening after a massive fire broke out in its vicinity, an area that had previously been affected by similar fires just days ago.

The situation in Spain reflects an escalating environmental crisis in Europe, where wildfires are recurring in southern countries, threatening tourism, rural communities, and wildlife, and confirming that addressing the impacts of climate change is no longer a luxury, but an urgent priority.