A wildfire continued to burn out of control across Spain’s central Guadalajara province on Monday, entering its fifth day and becoming the country’s largest blaze of the year, as forecasters warned that an approaching heatwave would sharply increase wildfire risks across much of the country.
Spain and other parts of southern Europe have experienced increasingly severe wildfire seasons in recent years, a trend scientists attribute to climate change.
The latest fire comes less than two weeks after a wildfire near Bedar in Almeria province claimed 13 lives, making it one of Spain’s deadliest blazes in decades.
Authorities on Monday ordered the evacuation of three more municipalities as the La Mierla wildfire spread beyond 26,000 hectares. More than 1,000 residents have now been forced to leave their homes.
Regional leader Emiliano Garcia-Page said nearly 30 population centres were surrounded by the flames, highlighting the scale of the emergency. Protecting lives and stopping the fire from reaching homes and urban areas remained the top priority, he said.
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Spain’s weather agency, AEMET, said the country’s third heatwave of 2026 is expected to last until at least Thursday, with temperatures exceeding 40°C (104°F) across much of the southeastern interior, significantly increasing the risk of wildfires.
Some locations could see temperatures climb to between 42°C and 44°C by Thursday as hot, dry air moves north from Africa. AEMET also warned of possible dry thunderstorms in eastern Spain’s mountainous regions.
Spain remains the European Union’s most fire-affected country this year. Data from the EU’s Copernicus wildfire monitoring service shows that 104,423 hectares have burned across Spain in 2026, compared with 41,781 hectares in France.
The current wildfire follows an exceptionally destructive fire season last summer, when Spain recorded 354,747 hectares burned and 63 major wildfires, the highest annual burned area in the past decade.
Reuters
