Heat wave forecast for Spain, Portugal fuels wildfire worry

Weather forecasters say Spain is expected to have its second heat wave in less than a month and that it will will last at least until the weekend

Spain's second heat wave in less than a month and the year's first for neighboring Portugal is expected to last at least until the weekend, weather forecasters said Tuesday. With temperatures in both countries already elevated, the outlook magnified wildfire worries.

Portugal could get the highest temperatures; its central Alentejo region is expected to reach 46 degrees Celsius (115 F) on Wednesday and Thursday.

Spain's State Meteorological Agency said southern cities such as Cordoba and Seville could reach 42 C (107.6 F). Pontevedra in northwest Spain, a region less used to such extreme heat, could hit a record 41 C (105.8 F).

Meteorologists said an overheated mass of air and warm African winds are driving temperatures in the Iberian Peninsula beyond their usual highs.

Both Portugal and Spain started the week battling a number of wildfires in both countries, and authorities said the sweltering conditions could worsen the fire danger.

Civil protection services in Spain helped evacuate 400 people from seven different villages near Las Hurdes, in the central-western Extremadura region, owing to a wildfire that scorched some 2,500 hectares (6,200 acres).

Regional agriculture chief Begoña García Bernal said the fire that started Monday was not expected to be brought under control soon. She said it appeared to have been started by lightning.

The Spanish army's emergency unit deployed 100 soldiers to help some 300 firefighters and other response teams battle the fire.

Hundreds of firefighters in Portugal tried to tame fires in the center of the country that forced the evacuation of dozens of people from their homes, mostly in villages around Santarem and Pombal.

On Saturday, Portugal’s government declared a state of heightened alert that was set to run from Monday through Friday.

The danger of more fires led Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa to postpone a visit Mozambique this week. President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also canceled a trip to attend a United Nations event in New York.

The European Union has said climate change has the continent facing one of its hardest years for natural disasters such as droughts and wildfires.

Spain experienced a heat wave in mid-June that lasted a week and was said to be the earliest recorded in almost 40 years.

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AP video journalist Helena Alves reported from Lisbon, Portugal.

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