Climate change helps breed springtime wildfires in Spain

By JOSEPH WILSON
Associated Press

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Firefighter Manuel Rubio had never seen a blaze like the one that raged for the past week in eastern Spain. The blaze that has burned over 4,600 hectares (11,660 acres) has surprised Rubio and fire experts by displaying a ferocity normally seen only in the hottest days of summer. But a prolonged drought after the country’s record-hot 2022 appears to have brought the wildfire season forward. Officials are now bracing for more huge fires. Spain had the most burned terrain in Europe last year. The Mediterranean region is warming faster than the global average due to climate change caused by the release of greenhouse gases.