Firefighters in Greece, Spain, and Portugal continue to battle wildfires as persistent hot, dry conditions challenge efforts to contain the blazes.
A wildfire in Greece burned out of control for a fourth day on the island of Chios, prompting several more overnight evacuations.
Two water-dropping planes and two helicopters were operating in the north of the island in the eastern Aegean Sea, where local authorities said a lull in high winds was helping firefighters early Friday.
Following a series of large fires in western Greece earlier this week, the Fire Service was on alert on Friday outside Athens and in nearby areas in the south of the country, where adverse weather conditions had elevated the fire risk.
Residents tried to extinguish wildfires burning in Kaminia, Achaea, Peloponnese, along with firefighters, volunteers, and aircraft which have been fighting since August 12 to extinguish fires raging in many areas of Greece. The Coast Guard carried out two parallel operations in Chios and Achaia to rescue citizens from beaches at risk from the fires.
Following a series of large fires in western Greece earlier this week, the Fire Service was on alert on Friday outside Athens and in nearby areas in the south of the country, where adverse weather conditions had elevated the fire risk.
Spain was fighting 14 major fires, according to Virginia Barcones, general director of emergency services.
Temperatures were expected to climb over the weekend.
“Today will once again be a very tough day, with an extreme risk of new fires,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on X.
Hoy volverá a ser un día muy duro, con riesgo extremo de nuevos incendios.
El Gobierno sigue volcado con todos los recursos para frenar el fuego.
Gracias, siempre, a los que lucháis en primera línea para protegernos. https://t.co/gRnOA3nzF8— Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) August 15, 2025
The national weather agency, AEMET, warned of an extreme fire risk in most of the country, including areas where the largest blazes were burning in the north and west.
A heatwave, which brought temperatures exceeding 40 degrees on several days this month, was expected to last through Monday.
Fires in the Galicia region forced the closure of several highways.
The high-speed rail line connecting it to Spain’s capital, Madrid, remained suspended.
The fires in Spain this year have burned 158,000 hectares, according to the European Union’s European Forest Fire Information System.
That is an area roughly as big as metropolitan London.
In both Spain and Portugal, it was the Feast of the Assumption, a major Catholic holiday usually marked by family gatherings and religious processions.
In Portugal, nearly 4000 firefighters were battling fires on Friday.
Seven major fires were active.
Authorities extended the state of alert until Sunday, amid high temperatures expected to last through the weekend.
