Disasters & Incidents
Spain wildfire death toll rises to 14 after woman dies
A woman badly injured in the July 9 wildfire in Bedar, in Spain's southern Almeria province, has died in a Seville hospital, raising the death toll from the blaze to 14, the hospital said Tuesday.
The woman had been treated at Virgen del Rocio University Hospital since suffering severe injuries in the fire. A hospital spokeswoman told AFP she had died but did not give further details. Spanish media reported that she had remained in intensive care with burns covering 70 percent of her body.
The fire tore through Bedar, a hamlet with a large foreign population, and spread at up to 100 metres a minute at its peak. Victims were trapped in vehicles or on foot as they tried to flee.
Before the latest death, Spanish authorities said 12 of the 13 victims were foreign nationals: seven from the United Kingdom, three from Belgium, one from France and one from the United States. The other victim was Spanish. Officials said the earlier dead were eight women and five men, all adults.
Authorities suspect the wildfire began when a power line broke and ignited vegetation dried by hot weather.
Separate wildfires have hit Spain in recent days, burning tens of thousands of hectares west of Madrid, with no casualties reported so far.
Update
A woman injured in the July 9 Bedar wildfire has died at Seville's Virgen del Rocio University Hospital.
The death toll from the Almeria wildfire has risen from 13 to 14.
Spanish media reported that the woman had been in intensive care with burns covering 70 percent of her body.
Fresh wildfires have recently hit Spain west of Madrid, burning tens of thousands of hectares, with no reported casualties so far.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 15:09:33 UTC.
Update
Authorities said the 13 victims were eight women and five men, all adults.
The fire broke out last Thursday in Almeria province in southern Spain.
High winds and extreme heat helped the flames spread through forests and scrubland.
Emergency services initially recovered 12 bodies that were so badly burned that DNA samples were needed for identification.
The source says the fire was caused by an electrical cable falling on a road.
The fire devastated about 7,000 hectares, or more than 17,000 acres, of land.
The fire has been brought under control, and residents have been able to return home since Sunday.
The source cites European Forest Fire Information System data saying more than 393,000 hectares burned in Spain in 2025.
Source note: AFP news report published on 14 July 2026 at 21:51:43 UTC.
Update
Authorities said post-mortem examinations had been completed.
Officials said seven victims were from the United Kingdom, three from Belgium, one from France and one from the United States.
Officials said the remaining victim was a Spanish citizen.
Source note: AFP news report published on 14 July 2026 at 21:34:14 UTC.
Update
Spain confirmed that 12 of the 13 wildfire victims were foreigners.
Source note: AFP news report published on 14 July 2026 at 21:22:34 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The hospital did not provide further details about the woman who died, including her nationality.
The cause of the wildfire remains stated as a suspicion by authorities, not as a confirmed finding.
The report that the woman had burns covering 70 percent of her body comes from Spanish media.
Source
AFP news report published on .