Three firefighters died while battling wildfires in Greece, with two trapped in Crete’s Rethymno region and another found unconscious near Gytheio in the Peloponnese. Blazes also spread to Lesbos and Paros, prompting evacuations of villages and tourists. In Spain, a massive fire near Madrid has burned over 43,000 hectares, becoming the largest recorded wildfire in the country’s history, with more than 207,000 hectares burned nationwide this year; authorities have allowed thousands to return home after evacuations.

Meanwhile, France faces continued flare‑ups in the Gironde region, where temperatures reach 41 °C and orange heatwave alerts are in effect for 16 departments, and officials warn of dry winds threatening defence‑linked sites. Climate experts note that Europe is warming twice as fast as the global average, intensifying summer heatwaves and wildfire risk across the continent.