Spain experiences worst summer of fires in decades. More than 400,000 hectares have burned according to the Copernicus satellite system, four firefighters have lost their lives in firefighting efforts, and more than 30,000 people have been evacuated. As the emergency continues, political debate rages in the senate and in the streets. teleSUR
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00:00Spain experiences worse summers of fires in decades.
00:04More than 400,000 hectares have burned according to the Copernicus satellite system.
00:09Four firefighters have lost their lives in firefighting efforts,
00:13and more than 30,000 people have been evacuated.
00:17As the emergency continues, political debate rages in the Senate and in the streets.
00:22Let's see more.
00:25Data confirms that 2025 is already the most devastating year in three decades.
00:30Galicia and Castilla and Leon have been the worst affected and active fires continue in several areas of these regions.
00:36The situation has triggered a bitter political debate with the Popular Party calling the head of civil protection, Virginia Barcones, a pyromaniac.
00:45I believe that hope at this time is already in the hearts of all those who are involved,
00:50seeing that the weather has given us a break,
00:53that it has finally begun to work in favor of extinguishing the fires,
01:00and that we can see the end much closer now.
01:03The Minister of the Interior, Fernando Gran Marlaska,
01:06has responded to criticism from the right which seeks to blame the central government,
01:10even though forest management and prevention are regional responsibilities.
01:13I cannot agree with the partisan use of the Senate
01:17and a catastrophe such as the one we are experiencing to serve the interests
01:22of a party and its strategy of harassing and overthrowing the government,
01:27often based on manipulation and noise.
01:30Meanwhile, forest firefighters denounce a precarious situation due to neoliberal subcontracting,
01:37they point out that they have become multi-emergency core,
01:39and their workloads have increased, but their working conditions have not improved.
01:43Well, I have been working for a private company for almost 20 years,
01:48now I have been with a public company for four years,
01:50I thought we would improve considerably, but that has not been the case.
01:54In the end, business criteria prevail,
01:56I have yet to try direct management by the administration,
01:59which we believe is the best formula.
02:00In the midst of negotiations, the community of Madrid,
02:04governed by Isabel Díez-Iruso,
02:06is trying to avoid responsibility by passing it on to the public company TRAGSA
02:10instead of opting for direct management.
02:13That company agreement is the option that the public company TRAGSA should consider.
02:17What we do is provide a future ecosystem
02:20to make it much easier to achieve better conditions for workers.
02:25Mistrust is also growing among the population,
02:27some suspect that the fires are not simply accidental,
02:30but that there are hidden agendas behind them.
02:33I would say that from my point of view,
02:35I don't know if they are caused by someone with power and so on,
02:38but I think the fires are provoked.
02:41With more than 400,000 hectares devoured by fire
02:44and tens of thousands of people evacuated,
02:46Spain is facing a tragedy that is not only destroying forests and lives,
02:50but also exposing the limits of a model of privatization and cutbacks.
02:54Forest firefighters announce a large protest for October 18th in Madrid
02:58to challenge the lack of prevention and precarious working conditions.
03:02In this context,
03:03the Spanish government has terminated the emergency situation in force
03:07for several weeks due to the strong fires that claimed the life of four people.
03:11On Sunday, only three fires were active simultaneously,
03:15a number considerably lower than the 20 fires that were active
03:19at the most critical moment of the emergency.
03:22The head of Civil Protection Virginia Barcones
03:25assured that although the situation was practically under control,
03:29nobody can lower their guard
03:31because this event could be repeated
03:33due to the dangerous temperatures and the scarce rains.
03:36Therefore, it is necessary
03:38that both the authorities and the population remain alert.
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