Wildfires kill at least 35 in Portugal, northern Spain

The New York Times

MADRID — At least 35 people have been killed and dozens more injured by wildfires in Portugal and northern Spain, as strong winds from a hurricane fanned hundreds of blazes sweeping across forested territory.

The authorities in Portugal declared a state of emergency in affected areas over the weekend, when about 500 fires were reported in the central and northern regions, and they raised the death toll to 31. About 4,000 firefighters were working to extinguish at least 65 blazes Monday morning.

Across the border in Spain, fires reached the outskirts of the port city of Vigo, forcing the temporary closing of a car factory. Television news reports and videos on social media showed residents forming human chains to pass water buckets to help put out flames.

The Spanish authorities said that more than 90 fires were burning in the northern regions of Galicia and Asturias. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who is from Galicia, traveled Monday to his home region, where the authorities confirmed that at least four people had died.

The area saw some relief as rain began to fall early Monday.

The fires had spread rapidly since Sunday, in part because of strong winds tied to Hurricane Ophelia in the Atlantic Ocean, Spanish meteorologists said. But investigators are looking at human causes.

Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of Galicia, said on Monday that many of the fires were acts of arson.

While touring Galicia on Monday, Mr. Rajoy also suggested that arson was behind the fires. “It’s impossible that this could have happened in normal conditions,” he said.

Even so, the fires are certain to revive the debate over whether the authorities have allocated sufficient resources to forestry management, as well as Portugal’s reliance on volunteer firefighters and its failure to punish landowners who leave forests abandoned.

Portugal’s forests have been burning repeatedly during an unusually dry and warm summer. In June, 64 people were killed near the town of Pedrógão Grande, many trapped in cars as they tried to escape the flames. It was the country’s deadliest fire.