More than 100 wildfires stretched thousands of firefighters to the limit in northern Portugal on Wednesday, with seven deaths since the worst spate of fires in recent years spread out of control over the weekend.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro declared a state of calamity for the hardest-hit areas, invoking powers to mobilize more firefighters and civil servants.
Prime minister also called on police investigators to redouble their efforts to find those who started the fires and pledged help for those who have lost their homes or have been evacuated.
The European Copernicus satellite service said that over 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) were scorched and a combined 13 kilometers (8 miles) of fire fronts were detected.
Vehicles drive past a fire burning by the road near Sever do Vouga, a town in northern Portugal that has been surrounded by forest fires.Thick grey smoke and the smell of burnt wood reached some 85 kilometers (50 miles) across the border into northwest Spain.
Wildfire advances near Sever do Vouga, a town in northern Portugal that has been surrounded by forest fires.Portugal was devasted by massive fires in 2017 that killed over 120 people.