Extreme weather in Europe

Forest fires continue to rage: “Extreme threat”

The extensive forest fires in southern Europe continue to rage. The EU says in a statement that the Union is working “continuously” to support Greece, Spain and Portugal, among others, which have been hit hard, writes AFP.

Sweden is participating in the extinguishing work through the EU’s civil protection cooperation, reports SVT Nyheter.

“It is hot and dry and this creates the conditions for large fires to break out,” says MSB coordinator Anders Marcus.

In Spain, another person has died in the fires on Thursday.

“The threat is still extreme,” writes Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on X.

Several arrested – suspected of starting the forest fires

Several people have been arrested in both Spain and Greece, suspected of causing several of the forest fires that have raged in the countries in recent days. In the Spanish city of Zamora, a man was arrested on suspicion of setting fire to a rubbish dump, according to Reuters.

The heat caused the fire to spread rapidly. 4,000 hectares of land burned and five people were injured, police said.

In Greece, two young men have been arrested on suspicion of deliberately starting the large fire that broke out in the city of Patras on Tuesday, the newspaper Ta Nea reports.