![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AFP__20260721__C2TK8WH__v1__HighRes__SpainWildfireEmergencyClimate-1024x768.jpg\")
A wildfire that broke out on July 16 in La Mierla area, near Guadalajar has devastated more than 29,000 hectares and caused the evacuation of several hundred people. (Photo by Handout \/ UME \/ AFP)<\/p>\nMadrid,\u00a0Spain \u2013 Two major wildfires merged west of Madrid on Friday, where some residents could smell smoke drifting in from blazes burning out of control near the Spanish capital.<\/p>\n
Strong winds were expected to hamper efforts to contain the wildfires, which authorities said were the worst in the region\u2019s history and had forced the evacuation and confinement of 19,000 people so far.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe smoke was incredibly thick. You couldn\u2019t breathe,\u201d Jose Cobos, who fled his home with his wife and three dogs, told private broadcaster Antena 3.<\/p>\n
Only emergency vehicles were allowed on roads near the blaze, while police set up checkpoints to prevent unauthorised access, according to an AFP reporter at the scene.<\/p>\n
Two of the three wind-fuelled wildfires burning west of Madrid had merged into a single blaze, regional emergency services wrote on X.<\/p>\n
Officials had earlier said the main priority for firefighters was to prevent the fires\u2019 \u201cconvergence\u201d.<\/p>\n
From the Temple of Debod park, on the western edge of central Madrid overlooking the city\u2019s outskirts, a thick plume of grey smoke could be seen rising above the horizon as wildfires burnt about 60 kilometres (40 miles) away.<\/p>\n
Dora Fernandez, a 57-year-old nurse walking her dog in the park, said she was not worried despite the scale of the blaze.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s far from here,\u201d she said, adding firefighters \u201cknow how to stop it\u201d.<\/p>\n
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told reporters strong winds, low humidity, and high temperatures were complicating the fight against the flames.<\/p>\n
Carlos Novillo, the Madrid regional government\u2019s emergency management chief, said weather conditions were \u201cexpected to improve\u201d overnight, with cooler temperatures and higher humidity forecast for Saturday.<\/p>\n
Spain\u2019s government declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and neighbouring Avila province late Thursday, allowing additional resources to be deployed more quickly and placing the Military Emergency Unit (UME) in charge of coordinating the response.<\/p>\n
A wildfire that broke out on July 16 in La Mierla area, near Guadalajar has devastated more than 29,000 hectares and caused the evacuation of several hundred people. (Photo by Handout \/ UME \/ AFP)<\/p>\n
\u2018Catastrophic\u2019 <\/p>\n
At least 19,000 people in the Madrid region have been evacuated or ordered to remain indoors due to wildfires that have become the worst in the region\u2019s history, regional president Isabel Diaz Ayuso said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe situation is completely unusual and catastrophic,\u201d she told reporters, adding that the priority was \u201cto save lives\u201d.<\/p>\n
More than 430 elderly people and people with disabilities from five care homes were among the evacuated, the regional government of Madrid said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Television images showed Guardia Civil police officers wearing face masks helping elderly residents in wheelchairs board buses as care homes were evacuated.<\/p>\n
The largest evacuation operation took place in San Martin de Valdeiglesias, with most of the 178 residents at the private Lopez Rumayor care home\u00a0evacuated to the municipal sports hall.<\/p>\n
Spain has seen a series of blazes in recent days as a heatwave and dry conditions have heightened the risk of fast-moving fires, particularly in scrubland areas where dry vegetation has fuelled the flames.<\/p>\n
The country\u2019s largest active wildfire is burning in the province of Guadalajara, around 100 kilometres north of Madrid, where it has scorched about 32,000 hectares over the past week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are living through a dramatic situation, not only in various Spanish provinces but also in regions of neighbouring countries,\u201d Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez\u00a0wrote on X, saying the government \u201chas deployed all available resources\u201d.<\/p>\n
Spain recorded its worst wildfire season in recent history in 2025, when more than 393,000 hectares were destroyed by fire, according to EFFIS.<\/p>\n