The wildfire raging near Madrid is “at its peak” and it is “beyond the capacity” of firefighters “to extinguish it”, a local official says, the BBC reports.
Carlos Novillo – the regional government’s emergency management chief – says the fire is moving toward the municipalities of Robledo de Chavela and Fresnedillas de la Oliva, a few dozen kilometres from Madrid’s western outskirts.
People in the two areas were earlier ordered to evacuate by authorities.
“It is not possible to attack the fire in that area, so defensive measures are being taken,” Novillo told reporters.
Approximately 25,000 people have been evacuated and more than 20,000 are in lockdown, Madrid officials say.
Moore than 130,000 people have been evacuated across Spain and France, according to each country’s latest figures.
The Spanish government has declared a national emergency, with Madrid’s regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso saying this is “the worst fire in the history of the region.”
Meanwhile in France, thousands of people escaped the Cap Ferret peninsula – a popular tourist spot – by boat as firefighters battled what was described as an “XXL fire” in the Gironde region.
