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Death toll rises to 13 in southern Spain wildfire as victims identified

· Environment ESP
Part of Spain Heatwave and Wildfires
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The death toll from a wildfire in southern Spain's Andalusia region has risen to 13 after a 93-year-old British woman died in hospital on Sunday, following an earlier count of at least 12 fatalities near the village of Bédar.

Authorities have identified six of the victims as three Britons, one French national, one Belgian and one Spaniard, while contact has yet to be established with Belgians reported missing, including a 63-year-old Belgian resident of Bédar. The blaze, sparked on Thursday by a faulty power line near Los Gallardos, scorched approximately 7,000 hectares and forced the evacuation of some 1,500 residents before being stabilised on Sunday. Evacuees have since been allowed to return home.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited the affected area on Monday, linking the disaster to climate change. The fire comes after Spain lost more than 393,000 hectares to wildfires last year.

Story development

  1. Spain's third heatwave of summer pushes temperatures to 45°C as Guadalajara fire toll doubles
  2. Wildfire in central Spain burns past 12,000 hectares as Zaragoza blaze nears containment
  3. Wildfire near Zaragoza expands to 7,600 hectares as fifth village evacuated
  4. Death toll rises to 13 in southern Spain wildfire as victims identified
  5. Wildfires rage across southern Europe, killing at least 12 in Spain and scorching record French acreage

Covered by 9 outlets across 6 countries

Sources

The reporting this story is built on

rtbf.be BEL Incendies en Andalousie : les Affaires étrangères confirment trois potentielles victimes belgesn-tv.de DEU Feuer in Andalusien: Erste Waldbrandopfer identifiziert: Fünf von sechs sind Touristen20minutes.fr FRA Incendie mortel en Espagne : Une Française parmi les six premières victimes identifiées

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