International

Southern Europe Under 'Hell' of Wildfires

Published: July 23, 2026 08:12 KSA

Many fires broke out in various parts of Southern Europe on Wednesday, particularly around Madrid in Spain, in the regions of Calabria and Sicily in Italy, and in Provence and the Bordeaux area in France.

In Spain, authorities on Wednesday ordered the evacuation of several areas around Toledo, 75 kilometers from the capital, as a massive fire threatened homes. Emergency alerts were sent via mobile phones to residents warning of the fire. The new fire spreads as hundreds of firefighters fight another massive blaze that has devastated a vast area about 100 kilometers north of Madrid.

Numerous fires have broken out in Spain over the past few days. These wildfires are spreading quickly, fueled by the heatwave that has gripped the country for two days. The largest fire is raging opposite Madrid, specifically in the province of Guadalajara, about 100 kilometers north of the capital, and has scorched 32,000 hectares since last Thursday. A massive fire destroyed around 15,000 hectares last week in the province of Zaragoza (northeast), while another fire killed 13 people a few days earlier in Almería (southeast). In southern Italy, dozens of fires are burning in forests and wooded areas on the island of Sicily, fanned by hot winds. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi announced the death of an Italian firefighter on Wednesday while fighting the flames, and more than 160 fires were recorded in the past 24 hours in neighboring Calabria. In France, firefighters were battling two major fires on Wednesday: one in the Gironde department (southwest), where a large fire has swept through more than 1,000 hectares north of the Arcachon basin and continues to spread, and another in the Var department (southeast), where the advance of the flames has stopped after burning 2,500 hectares. The fires have forced hundreds of people to evacuate their homes as a precaution. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that more than 12,500 fires have broken out since the beginning of the year, burning 44,000 hectares — an area larger than what was recorded in 2022 when fires swept through the southwest of the country.