Disasters & Incidents
Madrid wildfire grows as 63,000 people are evacuated or told to stay indoors
A wildfire west of Madrid that regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso described as the worst in the region's history was still burning on Friday, with Spain's interior ministry saying 63,000 people had been evacuated or ordered to remain indoors.
Officials said strong winds and extreme heat were making it harder to contain the flames. They said forecast winds were expected to ease somewhat overnight, which could help firefighters, but probably would not be enough to bring the blaze under control because of its size.
Carlos Novillo, the Madrid regional government's emergency management chief, said the fire was at its peak and was beyond firefighters' current capacity to contain.
Officials said two wind-driven wildfires had joined into one large blaze and were close to merging with another fire in the neighbouring Castilla y Leon region. Authorities ordered further evacuations from two localities west of Madrid and sent emergency messages to people in the affected villages.
The interior ministry said the latest evacuation included 5,000 holidaymakers from a campsite in El Escorial, northwest of Madrid and near a historic monastery. The Madrid regional government said more than 1,000 elderly or disabled people were evacuated from care homes on Friday.
Near Zarzalejo, a village of about 2,000 people, traffic built up on narrow roads as residents left with family members and belongings, an AFP reporter saw. Flames were visible on a mountainside through thick smoke. Near Chapineria, about 30 kilometres from Madrid, an AFP video journalist recorded people leaving by road, including some on foot with horses and ponies.
Spain's Guardia Civil said it had arrested a man accused of setting off the Madrid-region fire by using a farm vehicle despite a ban during high-risk conditions. Another person was under investigation over the same incident.
The fire has burned about 6,000 hectares in the Madrid region, an area with many homes. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was due to attend an emergency meeting in Cenicientos on Saturday. He said on X that Spain and neighbouring countries were facing a dramatic situation.
Spain's government declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and neighbouring Avila province late Thursday. The measure allows resources to be deployed more quickly and put the Military Emergency Unit in charge of coordinating the response.
Spain has faced several fires during a period of heat and dry weather. Officials said the country's largest active wildfire, in Guadalajara province about 100 kilometres north of Madrid, had been contained after burning about 32,000 hectares over the past week. The European Forest Fire Information System recorded more than 393,000 hectares burned in Spain in 2025, the country's worst wildfire season in recent history.
Update
Officials said strong winds and high temperatures were hampering efforts, and that easing winds overnight were unlikely to bring the fire under control because of its size.
Carlos Novillo said the wildfire was at its peak and beyond firefighters' current capacity to contain.
Two wind-fuelled wildfires had merged into one large blaze and were close to merging with another fire in Castilla y Leon, officials said.
More than 1,000 elderly or disabled people were evacuated from care homes, according to the Madrid regional government.
Guardia Civil said a man was arrested for allegedly starting the Madrid-region fire by using a farm vehicle despite a ban, and another person was under investigation.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 22:06:32 UTC.
Update
Spain's interior ministry said the latest evacuation involved 5,000 holidaymakers from a campsite in El Escorial, northwest of Madrid.
The source describes the fires as the worst the Madrid region has ever seen.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 19:42:48 UTC.
Update
A minister said the number of people evacuated or confined because of Madrid region fires had risen to 63,000.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 19:27:56 UTC.
Update
Officials put the number of people evacuated or ordered to remain indoors at around 40,000.
Officials said dozens of homes had been destroyed and several roads closed.
Two wind-driven fires combined into one large blaze and were close to merging with another fire in Castilla y Leon.
Guardia Civil said a man was arrested for allegedly starting the fire by using a farm vehicle despite a ban, and another person is under investigation.
Madrid regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso said it was the worst wildfire in the region's history.
The blaze had burned around 6,000 hectares in the Madrid region.
Spain declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and neighbouring Avila province, putting the Military Emergency Unit in charge of coordinating the response.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was due to attend an emergency meeting in Cenicientos on Saturday.
Officials said a separate large active fire in Guadalajara had been contained after burning about 32,000 hectares.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 18:39:34 UTC.
Update
Pedro Sanchez is expected to go early Saturday to the wildfire zone near Madrid.
He is expected to visit the emergency coordination centre.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska is expected to accompany him.
The visit is to the municipality of Cenicientos, where Sanchez is expected to attend an emergency meeting.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 17:49:41 UTC.
Update
Spain's government said the prime minister would visit the fire-ravaged Madrid region on Saturday.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 17:33:57 UTC.
Update
An official said the Madrid wildfire was at its peak.
An official said the Madrid wildfire was impossible to control.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 17:38:33 UTC.
Update
Central government delegate Francisco Martin Aguirre said about 40,000 people had been evacuated or ordered to remain indoors.
Aguirre described the situation as very complicated.
Aguirre said forecasts showed wind would continue and the fire could keep advancing through the evening.
Authorities could not rule out further evacuations and confinement orders.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 17:05:30 UTC.
Update
Authorities evacuated or ordered about 26,000 people to stay indoors in the Madrid region.
Spanish authorities ordered 7,000 more people to evacuate from two localities west of Madrid.
Officials said the fire had destroyed dozens of homes and closed several roads.
Spain's Guardia Civil said a man had been arrested for allegedly starting the Madrid-region fire by using a farm vehicle despite a ban, and another person was under investigation.
Madrid regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso described it as the worst wildfire in the region's history.
The blaze had burned about 6,000 hectares in the Madrid region.
Hundreds of elderly people and people with disabilities from five care homes were among those evacuated.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 16:33:15 UTC.
Update
A central government representative said there was little time left before the Madrid-region wildfire merged with a 9,000-hectare blaze in Castilla y Leon.
The Madrid-region fire was described as covering 6,000 hectares.
The neighbouring fire was identified as being in Avila province.
Nicanor Sen Velez said the situation was very bad news and said the Madrid-region blaze had started as two separate outbreaks before joining into one front.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 14:52:03 UTC.
Update
Ecologio Cabrera, 86, described fleeing Aldea del Fresno and sheltering in a sports hall in Vilamanta.
Hundreds of evacuees were sheltering in the Vilamanta sports hall, with many leaving home with only the clothes they were wearing.
A local councilor said all 3,500 residents of Aldea del Fresno had been evacuated.
Authorities said the fires were the worst the Madrid region has known.
Around 100 people have been treated for smoke inhalation, anxiety attacks and other minor illnesses.
Dozens of homes have been destroyed.
Residents in Villa del Prado remained confined indoors as firefighters tried to stop the blaze spreading further.
A resident said century-old olive trees and nearby pines had burned near Villa del Prado.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 14:35:19 UTC.
Update
An official said a Madrid wildfire was close to merging with a blaze in a neighbouring region.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 14:38:04 UTC.
Update
Authorities said the wildfires were the worst in the Madrid region's history.
Spain's government declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and neighbouring Avila province late Thursday.
The Military Emergency Unit was placed in charge of coordinating the response.
More than 430 elderly people and people with disabilities from five care homes were among those evacuated.
Strong winds, low humidity and high temperatures were complicating firefighting efforts, while conditions were expected to improve overnight.
Spain's largest active wildfire was reported in Guadalajara province, where about 32,000 hectares had burned over the past week.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 13:05:26 UTC.
Update
The official giving the figure was the head of the Madrid regional government, Isabel Diaz Ayuso.
Ayuso said the wildfires were the worst in the region’s history.
Ayuso said the flames had so far burned about 6,000 hectares, or around 15,000 acres.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 11:43:09 UTC.
Update
Authorities said the Madrid-region wildfires had forced the evacuation or confinement of 19,000 people so far.
Two of three wildfires west of Madrid were described as on the verge of merging.
Spain declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and neighbouring Avila province late Thursday, allowing quicker deployment of extra resources and putting the Military Emergency Unit in charge of coordination.
Around 10,000 people were ordered to evacuate in the Madrid region, while several municipalities remained under confinement orders on Friday.
More than 430 elderly people and people with disabilities from five care homes were evacuated.
The largest evacuation operation described was in San Martín de Valdeiglesias, where most of the 178 residents at the private Lopez Rumayor care home were taken to a municipal sports hall.
An AFP journalist reported smoke and ash in Navas del Rey, about 50 kilometres southwest of Madrid.
Weather was expected to improve overnight, with cooler temperatures and higher humidity forecast for Saturday.
Spain’s largest active wildfire was reported in Guadalajara province, about 100 kilometres north of Madrid, where about 32,000 hectares had burned over the past week.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the government had deployed all available resources.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 11:42:01 UTC.
Update
An official said 19,000 people had been evacuated or confined because of the Madrid wildfires.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 11:27:28 UTC.
Update
An official described the Madrid wildfire as the worst in the region's history.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 11:24:56 UTC.
Update
An official said two wildfires west of Madrid were about to merge.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 10:17:13 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
Officials said the fire was not expected to come under control overnight despite forecast easing winds.
The cause of the Madrid-region fire is being investigated, and the arrested man is accused of starting it.
Source
AFP news report published on .