Spain wildfires cover over 100,000 acres, affecting nearly 88,000 people

The ongoing wildfires in Spain's Community of Madrid and Avila province have covered around 45,000 hectares (111,197 acres) and affected more than 88,000 people, the daily El Pais reported Saturday.

The fires affecting Madrid and Avila reached a combined area of ​​approximately 45,000 hectares, according to the latest estimate by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.

The estimate revealed that the Avila fire affected 21,000 hectares (51,892 acres) while the Madrid fire reached 24,000 hectares (59,305 acres).

Earlier in the day, figures released by the Interior Ministry showed that the wildfires in Madrid and Avila had already burned nearly 25,000 hectares (61,776 acres). While Avila accounts for between 13,000 and 15,000 hectares (32,100–37,000 acres) of the burned area, Madrid's toll stands at 9,940 hectares (24,560 acres).

The fires also left 87,750 people evacuated or confined. In Avila, 30,000 people remain evacuated, and 8,000 are under lockdown. Meanwhile, 29,488 were evacuated and 20,262 remain under lockdown in Madrid.

At least 10 roads are reportedly closed due to the large wildfire in Madrid.

The Spanish government also urged the public to stay indoors and wear masks outdoors due to smoke from ongoing fires.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen further voiced support for Spain and France on US social media platform X.

She announced that four planes from the rescEU fleet will arrive in Spain during the day.

"Copernicus is also providing emergency mapping to support the response in both countries," von der Leyen added.

Visiting the affected areas, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warned that the fire situation remained complex.

“We don’t know how the wind will develop, even though temperatures have dropped," he said.

He further warned that around 130,000 hectares (321,237 acres) had already burned since January, compared to an average of 100,000 hectares (247,105 acres) for the entire year over the last decade.

Meanwhile, the Andalusian regional government ordered a lockdown in a town in Granada province due to a wildfire that broke out on Saturday. The fire prompted authorities to raise the alert level to emergency status one.

Another fire broke out in a vegetated area during the day in Castellon, prompting the deployment of seven aircraft and numerous ground crews. Authorities noted that the fire's current situation is worsening.

In the meantime, around 100 employees of NASA's Deep Space Communications Complex in Madrid reportedly had to be evacuated on Friday due to the advancing flames.

According to data reported by El Pais, the number of hectares burned in Spain over the past two weeks jumped sharply as fires spread rapidly and became concentrated in specific areas.

The last two weeks of July are reportedly the fourth-worst streak of large wildfires since 1983.