Spain has asked for European Union help to fight forest fires in the northwest that have killed three people and forced more than 8,000 to flee their homes.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said on Wednesday that Spain has called on the EU’s assistance mechanism to help battle at least 14 fires across the country.
Spain has requested two Canadair firefighting aircraft and is ready to seek more help, including extra firefighters, if needed.
The EU assistance system, set up in 2001, allows the 27 member states and 10 other countries to support each other during emergencies.
Fires, fuelled by extreme temperatures and strong winds, have destroyed thousands of hectares in several regions of Spain, as they have elsewhere in Europe, notably in France and Portugal.
A person fighting the fire in Castile and León was killed on Thursday, bringing the death toll to three. Seven people were taken to hospital on Wednesday.
More than 8,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in Spain's León and Zamora provinces.
Galicia’s regional president Alfonso Rueda said 30 fires are being extinguished every day.
In Ourense province, firefighters have been unable to contain a large blaze in Chandrexa de Queixa. About 11,500 hectares have been burned there.
