Tragic Wildfire in Southern Spain Claims Lives, Forces Evacuations
WHO:
ABC News - Antonio Sanz, head of Andalusia’s emergency services.
ABC News - Jeffrey and Christine Kember, witnesses to the wildfire.
ABC News - Spanish authorities arrested two individuals for ignoring evacuation orders.
WHAT:
ABC News - Most of the victims of the wildfire are believed to be foreign nationals, with seven people dying while on foot after abandoning their cars.
ABC News - Four of the deceased are believed to be British, as indicated by the right-side steering wheel of their burned-out vehicle.
CNN - Nearly 20 people are still unaccounted for after the wildfire.
CNN - The wildfire is the first in Europe this year to claim multiple victims.
ABC News - Authorities completed autopsies and collected DNA samples to identify the victims.
ABC News - A wildfire in southern Spain has killed at least 12 people.
ABC News - The fire has scorched approximately 66 square kilometers (25 square miles) of land.
ABC News - Authorities evacuated 1,448 people from 11 areas.
ABC News - The fire advanced at a rate of 100 meters per minute (328 feet per minute) at its most intense.
ABC News - In June, Spain experienced over 1,000 excess deaths due to record-setting heat.
WHERE:
ABC News - The wildfire is located near the Sierre de Los Filabres mountains in Almeria province, Spain.
ABC News - The Kembers were in their Los Pinos farmhouse when the fire approached.
WHEN:
ABC News - The wildfire broke out late Thursday.
ABC News - The fire season in Spain last year burned more than 393,000 hectares (971,000 acres).
WHY:
CNN - The European Union has reported 314 fires of over 30 hectares each this year, nearly double the 158 at the same time last year.
ABC News - Justice Minister Félix Bolaños attributed the wildfire's intensity to a “climate emergency.”
ABC News - Spain has been experiencing frequent and severe heat waves, with temperatures often exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).
HOW:
CNN - Fires in August last year in Spain and Portugal led to more than 2,000 premature deaths from smoke exposure.
ABC News - Firefighters are using helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft to combat the wildfire.
ABC News - Fire crews conducted controlled burns around the perimeter of the fire to help contain it.
(UPDATED July 11, 2026 15:15 UTC)
A devastating wildfire in Europe has claimed the lives of seven people, most of whom are believed to be foreign nationals, with four of the deceased identified as British based on the right-side steering wheel of their burned-out vehicle. Authorities have completed autopsies and collected DNA samples to help identify the victims, while nearly 20 individuals remain unaccounted for, marking this incident as the first wildfire in Europe this year to result in multiple fatalities. The European Union has reported a significant increase in wildfires, with 314 fires over 30 hectares each this year, nearly double the number from the same time last year, following last year's fires in Spain and Portugal that caused over 2,000 premature deaths from smoke exposure.
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(UPDATED July 11, 2026 14:21 UTC)
A devastating wildfire in southern Spain has claimed the lives of at least 12 people and scorched approximately 66 square kilometers of land near the Sierra de Los Filabres mountains in Almeria province. Authorities have evacuated 1,448 residents from 11 areas, while two individuals were arrested for ignoring evacuation orders as the fire advanced at an alarming rate of 100 meters per minute. Firefighters are actively battling the blaze using helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, and they are conducting controlled burns around the perimeter to help contain the flames, which have been exacerbated by a climate emergency and record-setting heat waves across the region.