Wildfires Burn 32,000 Hectares in Spain and 2,500 in France

According to Lianhe Zaobao citing AFP, wildfires fueled by hot weather continued to spread across Spain and France. In central Spain's Guadalajara province, firefighters on Tuesday, July 21, were battling the country's largest fire this year. The blaze has burned about 32,000 hectares, forced evacuations in 34 municipalities and led 14 municipalities to impose lockdowns. Authorities said the fire had begun to stabilize and some residents were allowed to return home, but Spain's weather agency warned that wildfire risk remained at “very high or extreme” levels across most of the country and the Balearic Islands. In southeastern France's Var province, a fire has burned about 2,500 hectares, damaged dozens of homes and forced around 400 people to leave, while 2,300 households lost power on Wednesday. In southwestern France's Gironde province, two firefighters were killed when their fire truck was engulfed by flames. Authorities urged people in heatwave-hit areas to avoid barbecues and said 90% of wildfires are caused directly or indirectly by human activity.