Two Greek firefighters have died after they became trapped tackling a wildfire that swept through the Rethymno area of Crete, according to the BBC; Gale-force winds whipped up the flames, prompting the evacuation of several villages in the latest summer wildfire to break out in southern Europe.

Wildfires Across Southern Europe

In southern Turkey. The main Fethiye to Antalya highway had to be closed and part of a hospital evacuated because of a fire in Muğla province. Meanwhile, a fourth heatwave of the summer has begun in Spain and France, and firefighters are trying to prevent a flare-up from major wildfires that have just been brought under control.

Witnesses said several fires broke out on Crete and spread fast, with the worst fire front extending as far as 15km (9.3 miles) — the fire department said the two men who died were working near the western city of Rethymno.

Impact in Spain

Wildfires have also broken out elsewhere in Greece, on the islands of Paros and Lesbos in the Aegean Sea, and the southern town of Trifylia on the Greek mainland. In Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has warned the next 12 hours will be “decisive” in putting out a wildfire near the capital Madrid — “Things are progressing favourably, with maximum caution,” he told reporters, because of higher temperatures, lower humidity and the risk of gusts of wind.

More than 43,000 hectares (108,000 acres) has already burned at Burgohondo in Ávila province, 150km (93 miles) west of Madrid. It is now considered the largest recorded wildfire in Spanish history. In total this year more than 207,000 hectares of land have been burned by wildfires in Spain.

One of the team directing firefighting operations, Francisco Bolaños, said that while the fire had not “moved a centimetre during the night,” there were concerns it could re-ignite because of the higher temperatures, and the focus was on stabilising a perimeter of 180km (112 miles).

Evacuation and Return

Authorities have allowed thousands of people to return to their homes after restrictions were lifted in the areas of Toledo, Madrid, Ávila, and Castellón. In the Madrid region alone, 24,000 people have been told they can return and lockdowns on another 20,000 have been lifted.

Among those returning to their homes were about 1,000 residents of the towns of Navas del Rey and Chapinería to the west of Madrid who had been staying in Leganés, a town on the south-west fringe of the capital. The mayor of Chapinería, Lucía Moya, told Telemadrid that the consequences for the town were very severe and that “many residents have lost their homes and jobs. Getting back on track is going to be an arduous task”.

Many of the 2,000 people forced to flee the fires in the nearby Tiétar Valley were looked after by volunteers in the town of Talavera de la Reina, some distance south of the fire. However, some 300 of the evacuees remained on Wednesday morning and Mayor José Julián Gregorio told Europa Press that they would receive “the same level of care as on the first day”.

One fire remains out of control, at Vall d’Uixó north-west of Valencia. Climate change is driving up temperatures around the world, and Europe is the fastest warming continent, heating up twice as fast as the global average, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service. This is causing increased summer heatwaves, greater pressure on Europe’s water supply, and more intense wildfires.