cool summer breeze
Firefighters scramble to put out wildfires in France, Portugal and Spain amid heatwave | Euronewshttps://www.euronews.com/2022/07/13/firefighters-scramble-to-put-out-wildfires-in-heatwave-hit-portugal-and-spainTemperatures in central Portugal were forecast to hit 44 C on Thursday. In June, 96% of the country was classified as being in either “extreme” or “severe” drought.
In neighbouring Spain, at least 5,500 hectares have been destroyed by a fire in Las Hurdes in Extremadura, western Spain, this week.
The blaze has forced the evacuation of about 400 residents from eight villages, the regional government said on Thursday
Meanwhile, more than 1,000 firefighters have been battling since Tuesday to bring two wildfires under control in southwestern France near Bordeaux.
The blazes have already burnt more than 7,000 hectares of forest and grassland and prompted the evacuation of as many as 10,000 people along the Atlantic coast.
Fuelled by strong winds, fires have also raged along Croatia’s Adriatic Sea coast as well, with the most dramatic situation reported near the town of Sibenik, where water-dropping planes and dozens of firefighters struggled to contain the flames that briefly engulfed some cars and a church tower.
Two firefighters were killed in Greece when their helicopter crashed in the Aegean Sea on Wednesday near the island of Samos.
In southwestern Turkey, a blaze erupted close to the village of Mesudiye, near the Aegean Sea resort of Datca, and was moving toward homes in the area, according to the provincial governor’s office. It said at least nine water-dropping helicopters and five planes were deployed to battle the fire.
Meanwhile, the UK's Met Office weather agency warned on Friday that record temperatures expected next week pose a risk of “serious illness or danger to life.”