Fire crews in Greece, Spain, and Portugal are racing to contain wildfires. Calmer winds on Thursday have helped slow the blazes. Southern Europe remains at high risk due to hot, dry

Spanish leader Pedro Sanchez promised on Sunday a "national pact" to deal with the climate emergency, as he visited a western region battling devastating wildfires."The government of Spain will work now so that in September we can have the bases of this national pact to mitigate and adapt to the climate emergency,

VILLANUEVA DE LA SIERRA, Spain, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Spain battled 14 major fires driven by high winds and aggravated by heat on Friday as authorities warned of "unfavourable conditions" to tackle flames that have already killed seven people and burned an area the size of London.

Southern Europe is experiencing one of its worst wildfire seasons in 20 years, with Spain among the hardest-hit countries. In the past week alone, fires there have claimed three lives and burned more than 115,000 hectares, while neighbouring Portugal also battles widespread blazes.

So far, there have been no fire-related deaths in France or Spain, but authorities in Madrid have blamed soaring temperatures for hundreds of deaths.

By David Latona, Susana Vera and Charlie Devereux CONGOSTA, Spain (Reuters) -Extreme heat and strong winds caused "fire whirls" as a blaze burned several houses and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from near a UNESCO-listed national park in northern Spain,

The death toll in a fire that engulfed an apartment block in the Spanish city of Valencia rose Friday to nine. One person remained missing, according to forensic police.

A heatwave is continuing to affect the Iberian Peninsula. Thousands of firefighters have been deployed to battle ongoing blazes and towns have been evacuated. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited affected regions to meet with the heads of emergency teams.