According to AFP and AP reports, on July 5th local time, as heatwaves hit, temperatures in Europe rose again. Hundreds of firefighters were working hard to put out forest fires in France, Spain, and Portugal.
This latest wildfire has burned over 17,000 hectares (approximately 170 square kilometers) of land in these three countries, which is equivalent to the area of two Manhattan islands. It is predicted that temperatures in some areas of these countries could reach 40 degrees Celsius on that day.
In June this year, Europe experienced one of the most severe heatwaves on record, with thousands of excess deaths recorded. Given that more extreme weather conditions are expected to occur soon, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez expressed concern, stating that the annual summer wildfire season has arrived one month earlier.
In the northeastern part of Spain, near the Costa Brava, a large fire burned over 2,200 hectares (about 22 square kilometers) of land in two days. The fire department said that due to rising temperatures and the presence of many "smoking hotspots" within the blaze, extinguishing efforts on Sunday would become "complex."
In Portugal, emergency services said they have controlled "80% of the fire". The fire has destroyed about 13,000 hectares (approximately 130 square kilometers) of forests and bushes in the northern part of the country. Jose Costa, a senior official from the Portuguese National Emergency and Civil Protection Agency (ANEPC), said that the fire, which began on Thursday, has spread 35 kilometers, and 1,200 firefighters are involved in the efforts to extinguish it.
After requesting help from Portugal, Spain and Italy sent reinforcements and water-drag carriers to assist in extinguishing a fierce fire that had caused 9 people to be burned.
The Greek fire department stated that on the evening of July 4th local time, a rapid-spreading wildfire occurred in the suburbs of Thessaloniki, the country's second-largest city. Residents in three small suburbs located north of the city were asked to evacuate.
According to a report by Le Monde earlier this year, a report released by the French public health department on July 3rd showed that France experienced a record-breaking extreme heatwave during the week beginning June 22nd. The number of deaths recorded during this period was nearly 30% higher than in the same period of the previous year.
In the same statistical period, the number of deaths in Paris increased by 62%, and a similar surge in deaths was observed in the Loire region.
