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Date Published: 27/07/2023

Mediterranean in flames: the 11 countries hit by devastating wildfires

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Holiday hotspots like Spain, Greece, Italy and France are under siege from terrifying forest fires

Mediterranean in flames: the 11 countries hit by devastating wildfires

Greece, Italy, Croatia, France, Portugal, Algeria, Tunisia and Spain are all fighting against an unstoppable enemy: fire. The heatwave that has immersed Europe and north Africa in record temperatures has created tinderbox conditions and resulted in devastating wildfires that have reached 46ºC in places.

Thousands of burned hectares of land, at least 44 known deaths and entire evacuated villages are just the tip of an iceberg that experts believe has been largely created by climate change.

The warming of our planet, professor of fire science at Imperial College London Guillermo Rein, explained, is making the wildfires “larger, faster and harder to stop.”

“The intense heat of the summer dries vegetation and makes it very flammable, easier to catch fire."

He added that strong winds "greatly accelerate" this spread, warning of "walls of flames that cannot be stopped by ground crews or slowed down by airtankers".

Greece

Thousands of firefighters and volunteers have been working all week to douse the flames consuming the Greek Islands of Corfu, Rhodes and Evia, which is still considered “out of control.” The wildfire has spread to central Greece and has burned 34,000 hectares of land, claiming the lives of two pilots and a farmer in southern Evia.

On Wednesday July 26, two new fires were declared in Magnesia, where two people have lost their lives and Lamía, where several towns have had to be evacuated completely.

Italy

At least four people have died in the forest fires raging through Sicily, Sardinia and Calabria and thousands of people have fled from their homes as basic services like water and electricity have been cut off.

The Sicilian authorities have requested help of more fire services from other regions in the face of a "very difficult" situation that forced the closure of Palermo airport earlier this week.

To make matters worse, the north of the country was hit by a freak storm that left two people dead.

Algeria

The death toll has been the most staggering in Algeria, where as many as 34 fatalities have already been reported. Shockingly, 19 people have been arrested for their part in spreading the forest fires which have crossed from the northeast of the country into Tunisia. Mediterranean in flames: the 11 countries hit by devastating wildfires

Tunisia

Strong winds have pushed the fire from Algeria into Tunisia, where a school teacher has died. This week the EU plans to send to firefighting planes from Spain to help tackle the flames.

Spain

The epicentre of Spain’s devastation has been Gran Canaria, where around 500 hectares of land around Tejeda has burned to the ground this week. Hundreds of people were evacuated as a precaution and authorities now believe the blaze was caused by a careless forestry worker.

Portugal

In neighbouring Portugal, residents of a village near Cascáis were moved out as the flames crept close on Tuesday. The fire has finally been brought under control and while no deaths were reported, at least 13 people have been injured.

France

In the French Côte d'Azur, towns near Perpignan and Nice have also been burning since mid-week. The inhabitants of Cagnes-sur-Mer and Argelès-sur-Mer have been evacuated. On the island of Corsica, more than 200 hectares of forest have burned, although the fire has stabilised.

Croatia

In Croatia, 130 firefighters, with the help of water bombing planes, are trying to control a fire on the island home to the World Heritage medieval city of Dubrovnik. This fire broke out on Monday 12 kilometres from the walled city.

Switzerland

More than 200 people were evacuated from the Alpine village of Bitsch close to the border with Italy when a fire erupted last Tuesday. The inferno lasted for several days, burning up 247 acres of woodland.

Turkey

With temperatures soaring, hundreds of firefighters, planes and helicopters were deployed to the coastal Turkish town of Kemer to battle a blaze that burned for more than three days. Thankfully though, the fire has not spread to residential areas.

Canada

Farther afield, an incredible 1,000 separate wildfires are roaring through Canada, 460 of which are located in British Columbia. Some 29 million acres of land have been scorched.

Find all the latest weather and climate change news here or join our Spain Weather Watch Facebook group for regular updates

Image 1 & 2: Ministerio de Defensa

Images: 3, 4 & 5: EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid

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