A man tries to save what can be saved from a factory in a town west of Madrid where fires are still raging. (Photo: Cesar Manso/AFP)
Pedro Sanchez, Prime Minister of Spain, says firefighters were still scrambling to “save lives” on Saturday as wildfires raged west of Madrid. The country’s leader also warned against a “complicated” battle while strong winds are expected in the area.
The fires in the arid rural area have already meant that more than 35,000 people have had to flee their homes, Interior Department officials said. It is being labeled as the region’s worst fire on record.
Thick, gray smoke filled the air west of the capital as the smell of fire hung over the streets of Madrid’s capital.
“Our priority, our way of thinking, our goal is to save your life and protect inhabited areas,” Sanchez said in the town of Cenicientos, in the fire zone.
“There are a few difficult hours ahead. Although the temperatures have dropped, we don’t know exactly what the wind will do or how strong it will blow.”
In the town of Brunete, mayor Mar Nicolas said she was “bitterly worried” about the residents.
“There are fires every year, but this one was enormous. It is a catastrophe.”
⚡️Large-scale forest fires have engulfed southern Europe, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.
Spain has declared a national state of emergency. They are asking the EU for help as regional services are unable to cope with the fire on their own.
The situation… pic.twitter.com/MCyJHRp2QQ
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An overnight drop in temperatures provided the opportunity to fight the fire anew.
Francisco Martin, the central government’s representative in Madrid, warned earlier that wind could hamper the efforts.
Two separate wildfires in the Madrid area merged to form one enormous fire on Friday. It threatened to continue with a third fire near Avila in the Castilla y Leon region.
The government said early on Saturday that there was indeed progress, with the fire not being able to spread much further and reducing in intensity.
Residents of ten towns in the Madrid region were instructed to flee and in three towns people were told to stay in their homes. More than 2,000 people are being cared for in emergency evacuation centers.
Meanwhile, nine other fires are raging elsewhere in Spain.
More than 168,000 ha have already been destroyed in Spain this year and last year was the country’s worst wildfire season in recent history, with 393,000 ha destroyed in fires.