Europe has been warming twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. Scientists say that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness in parts of Europe, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires.

Spain is deploying 500 more soldiers to help battle wildfires that have ravaged parched woodlands during a prolonged heatwave, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said.