Spain Overwhelmed, Requests International Assistance to Combat Forest Fires

The Spanish government has requested assistance from the European Union to handle forest fires that have been sweeping across the country since early July, according to Spanish media reports on Friday (24/7). At the request of the Military Emergency Unit (UME), the EU Civil Protection Mechanism has been activated, with Spain requesting at least four aircraft to extinguish the forest fires, as reported by the Spanish international news agency, EFE. Greece has agreed to send two aircraft to Spain through the mechanism. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the situation in his country as quite dramatic. “We are facing a distressing situation; not only in various provinces in Spain, but also in regions of neighbouring countries,” Sanchez wrote on platform X. Sanchez convened a meeting of the State Coordination Committee for Emergency Situations on Friday to discuss the development of the forest fires. A state of emergency has been declared in the autonomous region of Madrid and the Province of Avila due to the spread of the forest fires. More than 10,000 people have been evacuated across the Madrid region. In the autonomous region of Castile and Leon, nine fire points are still burning, four of which are quite serious. In the Province of Avila, the fires have forced more than 1,500 people to evacuate, making it the greatest concern. The fire in the Province of Guadalajara, which has consumed around 32,000 hectares, remains active, but its development is considered manageable. The fire danger level across Spain remains very high.