Last week alone, 20 wildfires burned thousands of hectares of forest in the Galicia, Castile and Leon regions of Spain, according to reports.
In response, authorities decided to suspend rail operations in the region and close 50 kilometers of the Santiago pilgrimage route.
The Santiago pilgrimage route connects France from the city of Santiago de Compostela, the western tip of Spain, and thousands of people visit during the summer for tracking and more.
According to the European Forest Fire Information System, wildfires have burned 344,400 hectares of forest in Spain so far, equivalent to the size of Mallorca Island.
This is the largest wildfire-damaged area since 2006, more than four times larger than the annual average wildfire-damaged area from 2006 to 2024.
In addition, wildfires are spreading further as heat waves of more than 40 degrees Celsius hit every day.
According to Spain’s Meteorological Agency, the recent heat wave lasted 16 days, the third longest since observation.
Temperatures rose to 45 degrees in some areas over the weekend. “This is the first wildfire in 20 years,” Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles told a local radio station. “The forest fires are showing their specificity due to climate change and heat waves.”
So far, four people have been killed in the wildfires, and Spanish authorities have deployed 3,000 military personnel and 50 aircraft to put out the fire.
In addition, Spanish authorities said they had arrested 27 people since June on arson charges and were investigating 92.
As wildfire damage gradually spreads, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the day before that “the climate emergency that devastates the world is accelerating and becoming more severe, and it is becoming more frequent on the Iberian Peninsula,” adding, “We will propose a large-scale national agreement to mitigate and respond to the climate emergency.”
EJ SONG
US ASIA JOURNAL
