Spain ends national emergency over Madrid wildfires as new blazes hit Portuguese border
Spain has ended its national state of emergency over the Madrid wildfires, but a severe ongoing heatwave and new blazes near the Portuguese border continue to strain emergency resources and threaten regional stability.
Spanish authorities have ended the national state of emergency for the wildfires in the Madrid and Ávila regions after a week of intensive firefighting efforts. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced the decision to downgrade the response to operational level 2 following meetings with regional officials.
The Madrid regional prefecture reported that favourable night-time weather conditions have helped stabilise the perimeter, leaving almost no active flames or spreading fronts. However, approximately 1,000 residents remain evacuated, including those in two towns near the San Juan reservoir, located 60 kilometres from the capital.
The combined blazes in Madrid and Ávila have consumed at least 77,000 hectares of land. Regional authorities warned that the meteorological risk of fire remains very high, or even extreme in some areas, due to a persistent heatwave. This ongoing weather pattern threatens to reignite cooling hot spots and reverse recent containment gains.
Compounding the strain on national resources, a new wildfire erupted on Wednesday in western Spain near the Portuguese border. This blaze has forced the evacuation of more than 600 people across 11 areas in the Fermoselle region, with additional residents ordered to shelter in place and several roads closed.
Spain’s Military Emergency Unit (UME) has been deployed to manage this new level 2 fire, a classification that triggers additional support from the central government. The unit is also contending with two other level 2 fires in the same Zamora province at Val de la Loba and San Cipriano del Condado.
The escalating situation places mounting pressure on Spain’s public emergency budgets and rural economic stability. The Castile and León region is already grappling with the largest fire in Spanish history since record-keeping began. This ongoing blaze in Ávila province alone has burned approximately 50,000 hectares, severely disrupting local agriculture, tourism, and forestry assets.
Moving forward, authorities stated that efforts will focus on maintaining perimeter stability, monitoring for new outbreaks, and cooling residual hot spots. The sustained deployment of national military assets highlights the growing financial and operational toll that extreme weather events are imposing on European public services.
