Several large wildfires raged in central Portugal and western Spain menacing villages amid a heatwave that meteorologists expect to push the temperatures to near or above record highs later on Wednesday, likely stoking more blazes.
Nearly all of mainland Portugal was on red alert for extreme heat conditions, with the temperature in the central Santarem district northeast of Lisbon expected to hit 46 degrees Celsius (114.8°F), the IPMA weather institute said. The country’s record temperature of 47.3 C was registered in 2003.
The World Meteorological Organisation warned on Tuesday the heatwave was spreading and intensifying in large parts of Europe.
With human-caused climate change triggering droughts, the number of extreme wildfires is expected to increase 30% within the next 28 years, according to a February 2022 UN report.
In Lisbon, thermometers were expected to register 43 C, close to the city’s 2018 record of 44C.
