The fires ravaging Ávila and Madrid remain active this Tuesday. During the night, 50 ground units worked in one of the areas that caused the most concern throughout yesterday: the surroundings of the Cofio River, one of the most critical points at the moment and where on Monday the San Juan reservoir was particularly worrisome. The Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, stated that the last night has been “reasonably positive” for the evolution of the fires in Madrid, Ávila, and Toledo thanks to the work of the firefighting teams, especially in the north of the San Juan reservoir. “Today we can be a little calmer, especially given the meteorological conditions we will face in the coming hours,” he said in an interview on La 1. This Tuesday, an increase in temperatures is expected, which will again influence the firefighting efforts. These are 24 crucial hours before a new heatwave hits Spain, while the fires already affect more than 77,000 hectares.
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Lockdown lifted in the town of La Vall d’Uixó
The Generalitat Valenciana has lifted the lockdown in the entire town of La Vall d’Uixó in Castellón, affected by the fire declared four days ago, as planned.
According to the 112 Comunitat Valenciana, evacuation and lockdown measures remain in place in the other municipalities affected by the fire until 11:59 p.m. this Tuesday.
This morning, various aerial units were already working throughout the area to try to control the fire, the same sources pointed out. So far, the fire has an approximate perimeter of 72 kilometers and has burned about 8,500 hectares. (EP)
Forest fires
Vox points to Sánchez and avoids blaming PP barons for forest neglect
Last Saturday, the day after a national emergency was declared due to what has become the most devastating forest fire in Spain’s history, Santiago Abascal pointed to the culprit of the catastrophe: Pedro Sánchez. Through a video on social media, the far-right leader linked the flames ravaging Madrid, Ávila, and Toledo with other disasters, such as the 2024 Valencia DANA or the 2025 general blackout, attributing all to fanaticism, corruption, and government mafia. “This is Sánchez’s Spain, Nero’s Spain,” he added, alluding to the fire of Rome that legend attributes to the then emperor.
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Marlaska assures that the last night has been “reasonably positive” for the evolution of the fires
The Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, assured this Tuesday that the last night has been “reasonably positive” for the evolution of the fires in Madrid, Ávila, and Toledo thanks to the work of the firefighting teams, especially in the north of the San Juan reservoir, near Valdemaqueda. “Today we can be a little calmer, especially given the meteorological conditions we will face in the coming hours,” he said in an interview on La hora de La 1.
Marlaska explained that the priority now is to “consolidate what was achieved last night” and noted that, although the fires in Madrid and Ávila are being addressed as a single operational unit, the connections between both fronts “have been intermittent” and there has not been “an absolute and total explosive convergence,” a circumstance that, in his opinion, is favoring a more positive evolution of the fire.
Firefighters manage to contain the fire’s advance in Valdemaqueda (Madrid)
The intense work carried out during the early hours of this Tuesday has allowed containing the advance on the active fronts of the fire affecting the western mountain range of Madrid and preventing the fire from reaching Valdemaqueda, according to the Government Delegation in Madrid on social media.
As the Government delegate, Francisco Martín, announced after the last CECOPI meeting on Monday, the large deployment of aerial and ground resources, with more than 400 personnel working overnight, has reduced the threat.
Still, the fire remains active and uncontrolled, so efforts this Tuesday will focus on monitoring and cooling the affected areas in anticipation of the expected worsening of meteorological conditions.
The Community of Madrid has reported that the most critical area at the moment is the surroundings of the Cofio River, where the work during the night “has been positive,” although the expected temperature increase today will again influence the firefighting efforts, according to Emergencies 112 Community of Madrid. (Efe)
Meteorological conditions worsen
A new heatwave, the fourth, arrives on Wednesday, and temperatures continue to rise progressively today. “Today there are already warnings issued, at yellow level, the minimum, in Ávila and Madrid. Maximums between 35 and 38 degrees are expected. Tomorrow temperatures will be similar or slightly higher,” Javier Armenteros, Aemet delegate in Madrid, informs this newspaper.
Regarding humidity, it rose to 40% last night but will drop below 20% during the central hours. And tomorrow, more of the same. “Today the wind will shift from east to south, but still with low intensity, so in many places topographic winds [local airflows modified by terrain] will dominate, as in previous days,” Armenteros continues, specifying that a sustained wind of 10-15 kilometers per hour and maximum gusts of 25 are expected. Tomorrow from midday it shifts to southwest and intensifies, with gusts of 30 to 40. “Today, at altitude, the wind shifts to west, which theoretically would carry smoke to the capital. But if the fire is better and large smoke columns are not generated, it should not reach,” concludes the expert.
forest fires
He left prison after a jihadism sentence and found fire: “It was like returning to Syria for a moment”
Emergency services asked residents to evacuate as soon as possible due to the rapidly approaching fire. Luna Fernández, 49, had to pack for herself and her six children, but a question troubled her: whom should she notify that she was leaving her town without violating her semi-liberty regime?
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The Almorox (Toledo) front dawns very controlled
“The Almorox (Toledo) front dawns very controlled, we are only watching for possible flare-ups to extinguish them as soon as possible and prevent the fire from advancing further. All the efforts last night focused on the Cofio River [which flows into the Alberche River, exactly at the San Juan reservoir, whose tourist infrastructures have been ravaged by the flames]. Four hundred personnel worked to prevent the fire from jumping the road to Valdemaqueda, and it did not. We have been saying this for several days, but today, literally, is the most important day of all to prevent that fire from jumping. If it does, it would force a defensive strategy further up, without guarantees that it won’t reach El Escorial. Tonight, the fire has been contained,” summarizes the situation for EL PAÍS Israel Naveso, who was at the fire yesterday and is preparing to return today.
column
The tragic smell of summer
Sitting at sunset facing Mount Pajariel, a hump of land covered with trees that from afar look like broccoli, I wonder if my elders were right when this morning they said that one day was crossed by firebreaks that prevented burning. They are already the age of a Francoist prisoner, but I was alive when the coup d’état happened, which gives me license to offer my own memories, including the troubadour Serrat singing with a hoarse voice Todos contra el fuego (Everyone against the fire).
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Favorable night for firefighting work in Mijares (Ávila)
Firefighters who worked overnight atop the peaks of Mijares (Ávila), where there were two problematic fronts since Sunday, celebrate that the nighttime conditions have been favorable and they have been able to tackle and stabilize various flanks, such as the Mijares pass, with complex fronts in the previous hours. “No flames left the perimeter. It is cooling down, there was no wind,” says one of the workers who spent the night there as a lookout. Now we wait for the day’s progress and the effect of the expected temperature and wind increases.
forest fires
The PP ignores calls for a state pact on climate change
State pact? A chimera in the hyperventilated Spanish political climate. The Prime Minister has been calling for it since last summer’s wave of fires, reiterated it two weeks ago following the tragic fire that killed 13 people in Almería, and repeats it every day since last Friday: a great agreement to face climate change in light of the increasing magnitude of forest fires. The PP has ignored all these calls and is not willing to negotiate anything with Pedro Sánchez. Moreover, the PP parliamentary spokesperson, Ester Muñoz, hinted this Monday at ambiguous ideas regarding climate change certified by the vast majority of the scientific community. Meanwhile, the political truce imposed over the weekend due to the major fires in the country’s center was fading.
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13 autonomous communities are under heat warnings
Thirteen autonomous communities are under warnings for high temperatures, six of which are at orange level (significant danger) for temperatures that could reach up to 40 degrees, ahead of a new heatwave arriving tomorrow, the fourth of the summer.
The orange level especially affects the south and northeast of the peninsula; specifically Andalusia (which is also at yellow for strong winds and maritime storm), Aragon, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura, Galicia, and the Basque Country.
Seven other communities are at yellow: Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León, Catalonia, Madrid, Navarra, and La Rioja, according to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) forecasts.
Temperatures will be 36-38 degrees in most of the peninsula, except on the coasts, and will range between 38-40 degrees in the southwest peninsula and the Ebro valley. Temperatures could exceed 40 degrees in parts of the Guadiana and Guadalquivir valleys. Very strong levante gusts will blow in the Strait and the Cádiz countryside, reaching 70-80 kilometers per hour.
According to Aemet, temperatures up to 40 degrees are expected in large areas of Jaén, the Córdoba and Seville countryside, and the Genil basin (Granada), at orange risk level.
These heat levels will be reached in various points of Ciudad Real (Castilla-La Mancha), the Tagus valley (Toledo), large areas of Badajoz, and points in Cáceres such as Tagus and Alagón.
In the northern peninsula, in the Miño of Ourense (Galicia), temperatures could reach up to 39 degrees. Also on the Ebro riverbank and other points in Zaragoza province such as the Iberian system.
The Basque Country is also at orange level, with maximums up to 37 degrees inland in the coastal provinces, in Biscay and Gipuzkoa. (Efe)
The night was meteorologically calm in the Vall d’Uixó fire area (Castellón)
The night was meteorologically calm in the area affected by the fire declared last Saturday in Vall d’Uixó (Castellón), with light breezes and winds of 10 kilometers per hour.
According to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), during the night light land breezes and descending winds from the mountains to the valley bottoms blew.
Currently, humidity in the area is close to 80%, exceeding 90% in mountain areas, and the temperature is around 20 degrees in flat areas and 18 in mountain areas.
Aemet notes that visibility and air quality conditions in the area may not be good due to thermal inversions formed in low layers caused by nocturnal radiation cooling, added to the light wind at this hour.
The fire faces its fourth day still active this Tuesday after burning about 8,500 hectares, and although last night 6,000 residents of Vall d’Uixó were allowed to return home, most of those affected by this fire, which also affects the Sierra de Espadán Natural Park, remain evacuated. (Efe)
Forest fires
Another year, fire in Almorox
Gossip in Almorox believes that last Wednesday a resident who was barbecuing caused one of the fires devastating the Sierra Oeste of the Community of Madrid. Without much evidence, people talk about it being one of those summer residents owning second homes in the outskirts, where many have built chalets with pools. They tell it with a mix of anger and helplessness. This Toledo town of 2,569 inhabitants has become an all-too-frequent protagonist in forest fire news. This is the third fire that has broken out since 2019.
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FIRES
Neighbors trying to return to the fire: “We have to get through, volunteers need relief”
Idoia waits in Talavera de la Reina (Toledo) to return to her town, Sotillos de la Adrada (Ávila), from which she was evacuated on Saturday. She waits by her phone for a signal, a clue on how to return, despite the situation of the “worst fire” in Spain’s history still being uncontrolled. She has livestock, but now she is not worried about her animals or her burned properties. She has not yet had time to think about what the fire has destroyed. She only thinks about her neighbors. Most obeyed the evacuation order, but about fifty decided to stay in Sotillos. “Many were in the mountains as volunteer firefighters, and the order caught them there, and when they came down to the town, they stayed to continue helping as volunteers. Many had animals and stayed for that reason,” she explains. Among them, the town mayor, Juan Pablo Martín, who remains in Sotillos coordinating the response of those who stayed. He refuses to speak to the press until the flames are controlled, and on the phone, Iván answers, who is in the town square coordinating with others. “We have been breathing smoke for four days, but the situation is improving,” he admits. He says his father has managed to bypass the strict controls the Civil Guard has established at all access points and has brought them supplies and tools. And strength, because they confess to being overwhelmed after several days of firefighting. Communication with them is increasingly difficult because due to fire control efforts, power, water, and communication cuts are constant. They ask for portable batteries and non-perishable food. The owner of one of the town’s supermarkets left the store open, but supplies are already running low.
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Forest fires keep 13 roads and 178 kilometers of the Madrid road network affected
Forest fires keep 13 roads in the Community of Madrid closed or with traffic restrictions, affecting a total of 178 kilometers of the regional road network, according to the latest update from the Ministry of Housing, Transport, and Infrastructure.
The affected roads are M-501, M-507, M-510, M-512, M-521, M-531, M-533, M-537, M-539, M-540, M-541, M-855, and M-957. The regional government recommends avoiding travel through the affected areas and following emergency services’ instructions at all times.
Castilla y León activates the fourth alert for forest fire risk this summer from today until July 31
The Junta publishes this Tuesday in the Official Bulletin of Castilla y León (BOCyL) a new declaration of alert status for meteorological risk of forest fires for July 28, 29, 30, and 31 throughout the community, the fourth resolution approved this summer by the Directorate General for Prevention and Extinction of Forest Fires in response to episodes of extraordinary meteorological conditions that increase risk.
Meteorological forecasts point to an unfavorable change in atmospheric conditions due to the establishment of an anticyclonic ridge over the community, which will cause maximum temperatures between 36 and 39 degrees, minimum relative humidities below 10%, winds with intensities between 20 and 35 kilometers per hour, and gusts up to 45 kilometers per hour.
Additionally, on Friday, July 31, storms are expected in northern Castilla y León, according to the regional government in a statement.
Fire danger indices prepared by the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) and the Infocal operation place the risk between “very high and extreme” throughout the period, with a very high probability of ignition and fire spread capacity.
This alert declaration is made according to the Infocal Plan and entails the application of extraordinary preventive measures established in Order FYM/510/2013, of June 25, which regulates fire use and establishes preventive measures for fighting forest fires in Castilla y León.
However, these measures will not apply in the area affected by the fires in the province of Ávila, as in this territory the rules taken by the single command directing the emergency prevail after the declaration of Operational Situation 3 of the National Civil Protection System. This declaration implies that the Interior Minister assumes emergency direction and the command of the Military Emergency Unit (UME), the operational direction in the affected territorial area.
In general, due to the fire risk alert issued by the Junta, during its validity period, various activities are prohibited, applicable in forests and in the 400-meter-wide strip surrounding them as a protection perimeter.
Specifically, it is forbidden to light fires in the forest and all types of open spaces, as well as in recreational and camping areas, even those authorized; to use barbecues in open spaces, including authorized ones; to use fire under previously granted authorizations, which are suspended; and to introduce or use pyrotechnic material and launch rockets or any other fire-containing device.
It is also forbidden to use machinery in the forest and the 400-meter strip around it whose operation generates fire, deflagrations, sparks, or electrical discharges, except in emergency or general interest actions duly communicated and authorized.
Additionally, as a complementary preventive measure, the use of self-propelled agricultural and forestry machinery in the forest and agricultural lands less than 400 meters from forest land is prohibited between 12:00 and 20:00 hours. This restriction affects, among other activities, forage or cereal harvesting and baling in dryland areas, as well as the use of skidders, processors, and brush cutters.
The Junta has called on all citizens to be extremely cautious in any activity they carry out in the natural environment and its surroundings to avoid any behavior that could cause a forest fire. It has also reminded the importance of immediately reporting any fire outbreak or fire to the emergency number 1-1-2. (EP)
Work in the western mountain range of Madrid focuses on the surroundings of the Cofio River, one of the critical points
The fires ravaging Ávila and Madrid remain active. During the night, 50 ground units worked in one of the areas that caused the most concern throughout yesterday: the surroundings of the Cofio River, one of the most critical points at the moment and where on Monday the San Juan reservoir was particularly worrisome. The work “has been positive,” reported 112 Community of Madrid in the 7:00 a.m. update published on X.
The temperature drop during the night has favored the work. “This Tuesday an increase in temperatures is expected, which will again influence the firefighting efforts,” they detail. These are 24 crucial hours before a new heatwave hits Spain. The fires already affect more than 77,000 hectares.
Forest fires
Food, coffee, and beds for neighbors and firefighters at the solidarity hotel in Cebreros: “I’m worried about what comes next”
Smoke-free hotel, reads the sign, but it says nothing about the surroundings, gray, harmful, with a smell that seeps through windows, doors, and any crack. The dark cloud that clouds the skies and poisons southern Ávila acts over Cebreros (3,500 inhabitants), where two women and a man hug Jesús Martín, manager of the El Castrejón hotel, in the garden. Some tears of gratitude slip over the fabric of the masks as they say goodbye: he has given them free beds and food, and they have felt loved in a painful moment. The evacuees from El Tiemblo resting as best they can in the Cebreros sports center have received macaroni, paella, cold cuts, bread, coffee, fruit, water, and soft drinks thanks to Martín, obsessed with feeding the hungry and sheltering those who have lost everything or have not even been able to go home to check. Firefighters also sleep there, whom he pampers even though he has barely slept. The now hurts, but what will this region that breathed thanks to nature tourism and the primary sector survive on: “I’m worried about what comes next.”
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Insurance
How to claim insurance for damages from fires to homes, cars, and businesses
The wave of fires affecting various provinces in Spain is leaving behind damaged homes, burned fields, and destroyed cars and boats. Many affected people are evacuated and have not yet been able to return home, so it is still too early to calculate all the damages suffered. But there are a series of recommendations and steps to follow so that affected people can recover all or part of the damage caused by the fire.
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Good morning. We start the narration of the fires ravaging Spain, this Tuesday, July 28. The next 24 hours are crucial for firefighting efforts in Ávila and Madrid, as from Wednesday, meteorological forecasts are really negative [a fourth heatwave lasting until Sunday is expected] from the point of view of fighting the fire.
Read more The PP communities ask to postpone the meeting on the reform of regional financing
