Minister of the Presidency, Health, and Emergencies Antonio ​Sanz called the fire “the most devastating fire to ​date in our region” and described the situation ⁠as an “unprecedented tragedy”.

Earlier, there were reports of six ​deaths from the wildfire.

“Our deepest condolences to the families ​of the six people who lost their lives in the Los Gallardos and the affection from all of us to the ​municipalities affected by the fire,” Juanma Moreno, the leader ​of Spain’s southern Andalusia region wrote in a post on X.

Los ‌Gallardos ⁠is a municipality of the Almería province in Spain’s southern region of Andalusia.

The blaze comes after a wildfire burning out of control in southern France earlier this week forced ​the evacuation of ​over 10,000 ⁠people from two dozen small towns and villages near the Spanish border.

Early summer heatwaves ​across western Europe in May and June ​have ⁠parched vast areas of land, making them particularly vulnerable to wildfires this year.

Europe is warming at more than ⁠twice ​the global average, the World Meteorological ​Organization has said, making prolonged heat episodes increasingly likely.