As Western Europe experiences a record heat wave, Spain and Portugal have reported at least 1,169 heat-related deaths, according to each country’s health ministry.
At least 510 people died from heat-related problems in Spain between July 10 and 18, the country’s health ministry said. Of those deaths, 273 were reported on Friday, officials said. Another 659 heat-related deaths were recorded in Portugal between July 7 and 17, local officials said.
Thousands of firefighters were struggling to contain wildfires in France, Spain and Portugal that have destroyed thousands of hectares of land. The fires have forced thousands of people to evacuate to safety as extreme heat grips the region.
In southern France, more than 14,000 people were forced to flee as fires spread across more than 27,180 acres of land. The country’s interior ministry also issued red heatwave alerts for 15 French departments and orange alerts for 51 departments on Sunday.
France reached a maximum of 40.8 degrees Celsius — 105.44 Fahrenheit — on Sunday. Temperatures remained high on Monday and Tuesday, but were expected to break by Wednesday.
The number of people who died from heat-related deaths is unknown, but France’s Health Ministry told ABC News that information on the number of victims will be released by the end of the month.
A woman watches as the forest fire progresses near a residential area in Alhaurín de la Torre, Malaga, Spain, July 16, 2022.
Gregorio Marrero/AP
Firefighters in Spain are battling 30 active fires, mostly in Castile and Leon, Galicia and Andalusia, the Interior Ministry and Catalan authorities said.
Temperatures are expected to reach 42ºC (107.6ºF) in three of the country’s provinces on Sunday, prompting the state weather agency to issue “extreme risk” alerts.
In Mijas, Spain, in the municipality of Malaga, 3,000 people have fled because of the fires. More than 22,000 hectares of land are at risk of burning in Mijas province as firefighters battle to contain the flames.
Forest fires are starting earlier in the season, ending later and becoming more frequent due to climate change, the European Union said in a report last year.
Firefighters work against a forest fire near Landiras, southwest France, on July 16, 2022.
SDIS 33 via AP
“Climate change is exacerbating the situation, making countries more prone to forest fires and increasing the intensity of these events,” the report says.
Sweltering heat is also expected to grip other parts of Europe in the coming days. Areas of England are expected to reach 40C (104F) on Tuesday.
The UK government issued a national emergency and warned people not to leave their homes unless necessary, according to The Associated Press.
“This year, for the first time, we have issued a severe weather emergency response in the summer,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan said. said.
ABC News’ Aicha El Hammar Castano contributed to this report.
