Zaragoza wildfire: Apocalyptic scenes as blaze rips through huge area as people flee | World | News

A massive wildfire is devouring a huge area of Spain, pushing locals and tourists alike to flee for their lives. More than a thousand people have been evacuated from their homes in the Zaragoza area after a devastating blaze engulfed the region. Apocalyptic footage released by the Spanish Civil Guard shows the fire ripping through the land, as thick smoke billows above.

Aerial views provide a visual idea of how extensive the wildfire is, thought to have destroyed around 30,000 acres – an area bigger than the city of Manchester. The fire started burning in Cinco Villas, and has since developed into the biggest wildfire in Spain this year.

The fire broke out on Wednesday before doubling in size by Friday, and remains active despite firefighters’ efforts.

On Saturday afternoon, local authorities said it was “still far from being stabilised”, and officials from Aragon said it was advancing on its left flank.

But the Spanish minister of finance and interior, Roberto Bermúdez de Castro, said people could be a “little optimistic about how the fire has evolved” yesterday, with the blaze no longer out of control.

Around 450 ground personnel, 11 fire engines, 16 ground crews, six helicopters and two bulldozers were deployed to battle the blaze.

Among the areas evacuated are the towns of Orés, Asín, Luesia, Malpica de Arba, and Uncastillo, counting around 1,100 residents. Petilla de Aragón in Navarra has also been evacuated.

This isn’t the only fire to have devoured acres of land in Spain.

Earlier this week, seven Brits were sadly confirmed as dead in the wildfire that erupted in Almeria, southern Spain.

A spokeswoman for the Guardia Civil in Almeria said that, along with the deaths of seven British nationals, there were three fatalities from Belgium and one from each of the United States, France and Spain.

Spain has suffered frequent and severe heatwaves in recent years, with temperatures often exceeding 40C.

In June, Spain experienced several days of record-setting heat, with more than 1,000 excess deaths attributed to heat.