At least 11 people have died and 19 others remain missing after a fast-moving wildfire tore through Spain’s southern Andalusia region, authorities said, as emergency responders continued efforts to bring the blaze under control.
Andalusia regional president Juanma Moreno described the incident as a tragedy and warned that the death toll could rise. Preliminary information suggests several of the victims were foreign nationals, including four believed to be British.
The wildfire is believed to have started after a power line collapsed before spreading rapidly through woodland near Los Gallardos in Almería province. The blaze forced about 1,000 residents to evacuate their homes and triggered a large-scale emergency response.
Authorities recovered the bodies of the 11 victims in and around the village of Bédar, close to Los Gallardos.
Andalusia’s Minister for Health and Emergencies, Antonio Sanz, said the fire spread with exceptional speed, making containment efforts extremely difficult.
He said four victims were found trapped inside a vehicle, while others appeared to have died while attempting to flee the advancing flames.
Sanz added that the four people discovered in the vehicle were believed to be British because it had a right-hand steering wheel. He said investigators believed “the majority or even all” of the victims could be foreign nationals. The UK Foreign Office has been contacted.
Reacting to the tragedy, Moreno expressed his condolences in a post on social media, writing: “Our hearts are heavy and we are devastated by grief.”
Health officials said two people were hospitalised, one for smoke inhalation and another for burn injuries. Four others were treated at the scene for minor burns and respiratory complications caused by heavy smoke.
More than 150 firefighters have been deployed to combat the wildfire, with Spain’s Military Emergency Unit (UME) joining operations to support containment efforts.
The disaster comes as Spain battles another intense heatwave, with temperatures hovering around 40°C across many parts of the country and forecasts predicting highs of up to 42°C in some areas.
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced the deployment of Spain’s largest-ever summer wildfire response, aimed at tackling increasingly severe fire seasons.
Spain has witnessed a significant rise in destructive wildfires in recent years. Data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) shows that about 393,000 hectares were destroyed by wildfires across the country last year—more than six times the national average recorded between 2006 and 2024.
Scientists attribute the worsening wildfire risk to climate change, which is driving higher global temperatures. According to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, Europe is warming at twice the global average rate.
The rising temperatures have fuelled more frequent and intense summer heatwaves, increased pressure on water resources and contributed to increasingly destructive wildfires across the continent.
Last year marked the European Union’s worst wildfire season since records began in 2006, with more than one million hectares of land consumed by fire.
