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

Spain has endured the worst fire season on record, with devastating blazes continuing to destroy homes and land across the country.

So far, sparsely populated areas have been hardest hit, but thousands of residents have already been evacuated.

The fires have ravaged small, sparsely populated towns in the country's northwest, forcing locals in many cases to act as firefighters. About 2,382 square miles have burned across Spain and Portugal.

The key to preventing forest fires is creating a rural economy based on the use of forests. While this would generate much-needed employment in “la España vaciada” – “hollowed-out Spain”, the name given to the country’s depopulated rural areas – it also costs money. It is therefore essential to invest in forests.

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.

Every summer, forest fires sweep across Spain, dominating headlines and leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. This year's have been especially harsh, with devastating fires thus far in Tarifa,

A man has died after being run over by a bulldozer he was operating while fighting wildfires in Portugal, bringing the death toll in the country to three, officials said.

Authorities have evacuated thousands of residents from dozens of villages. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.