Burning trees during a wildfire in Carcastillo, in northern Spain. Photo: Eduardo Sanz/Europa Press via AP

Europe – where temperatures in some areas were soaring past 40C – is warming faster than any other continent, at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Last year was the hottest year on record in Europe and globally, the monitoring agency said.

Scientists warn climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making parts of Europe more vulnerable to wildfires.

The burning of fuels such as petrol, oil and coal release heat-trapping gasses that are the main driver of climate change.

Outside Madrid, firefighters had largely contained a blaze that broke out on Monday night, authorities said. It killed a man who suffered burns on 98% of his body, emergency services said.

Elsewhere, firefighters and nearly 1,000 soldiers were battling blazes in regions including Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Andalusia and Galicia. Thousands of people evacuated homes and hotels, including holiday-goers at beaches at the southern tip of Spain.

Regional authorities said on Tuesday afternoon that some of those evacuated from beach locations could return to their hotels.

In Portugal, more than 700 firefighters were working to control a fire in the municipality of Trancoso, about 217 miles (350km) north-east of Lisbon. Smaller fires were burning further north. 

Firefighters largely brought a major wildfire in north-west Turkey under control, the forestry minister announced, a day after the blaze prompted hundreds of evacuations and led to the suspension of maritime traffic.

The blaze broke out on agricultural land in Canakkale province. Fanned by strong winds, it rapidly spread to a forested area, then to a residential one. It forced the evacuation of 2,000 residents — some by sea — and led to 77 being taken to hospital due to smoke exposure, officials said.

Firefighters were still battling two other wildfires in Manisa and Izmir provinces in western Turkey, agriculture and forestry minister Ibrahim Yumakli said on social media.

The national weather authority placed most of France’s southern region on the highest heat warning, with temperatures above 40C expected for the second consecutive day.

The heat will spread to the north-east, including the Paris region, Meteo France said.

Some municipalities offered free or discounted access to public swimming pools.

Most regions in central and southern France were monitored for the high risk of forest fires, after a deadly blaze last week in the Aude region. Officials said the fire was under control but would not be fully extinguished for weeks, with hot spots at risk of reigniting.

In Greece, seven major wildfires mostly in the west forced multiple evacuations, destroying homes and businesses, while flames reached the outskirts of the country’s third largest city.

Other severe fires were ongoing at several areas on the western Greek mainland and on the island of Chios in the eastern Aegean Sea.

Nationwide, the civil protection service issued more than 20 mobile phone alerts on Tuesday with evacuation orders and guidance.

Meanwhile, temperatures were expected to hit 34C in England on Tuesday and Wednesday, especially in southern parts of the country, including London.

Officials define a heat wave as temperatures exceeding 25C for most of the UK — and 28C in London and its surrounding area — for three consecutive days or more.