A forest fire also raged north of Zaragoza, which is now largely under control. Image: keystone
According to the authorities, around 13,000 hectares have already been burned in a forest fire northeast of the Spanish capital Madrid.
July 19, 2026, 4:02 p.mJuly 19, 2026, 4:02 p.m
The area burned is equivalent to more than 18,000 football fields. So far the flames are not under control, and they moved 14 kilometers further on Sunday night, reported the state TV broadcaster RTVE.
More than 500 emergency services are busy on the ground creating fire breaks and containing the flames. So far it has been possible to keep the fire away from towns, said regional Environment Minister Mercedes Gómez. They are supported, among others, by the Military Emergency Unit (UME).
The forces on the ground would be supported by 25 firefighting aircraft. As a precaution, 20 communities with a total of around 800 residents were evacuated, said Gómez.
Due to drought and low humidity, the risk of forest fires is currently extremely high in large parts of Spain. Climate change increases the likelihood of fires in the Mediterranean region, for example, because it leads to long periods of drought and heat.
The area burned so far is twice as large as in 2025
Since the beginning of the year, large-scale fires in Spain have already destroyed more than 80,000 hectares of land, data from the European Commission’s Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) shows.
That was almost twice as much as in the same period last year. At that time, however, the worst fires only occurred in August, when the area burned rose from around 47,000 hectares to 380,000 hectares within a few days from the end of July to the beginning of August.
Good news about the fire north of Zaragoza
However, the all-clear was given for another large forest fire in the Aragon region in northeastern Spain. According to the regional government, the fire that broke out near Orés on Thursday is now largely under control. Around 14,400 hectares were destroyed there, said Aragon’s regional president Jorge Azcón.
Firefighters on duty north of Zaragoza. Image: keystone
More than 1,100 people had to temporarily leave their homes. More than 400 emergency services as well as numerous firefighting helicopters and firefighting aircraft fought against the flames.
Spain, its Iberian neighbor Portugal and other European countries have been hit by a series of forest fires for weeks. A fire last week in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia killed 13 people – mostly older foreigners living in the province of Almería, including seven Brits and three Belgians. (sda/dpa)