The major fire that led the Spanish government to declare a state of national emergency in the Madrid, Ávila and Toledo regions continues active.

Over 80,000 hectares have been destroyed and at least 92,000 people are either evacuated or confined in the affected areas.

Two crucial days

Speaking from the command centre in Madrid, the minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, said that the fires are being controlled “slowly”, and that the next two days are "absolutely crucia”, as the forecast from Wednesday onwards is “really negative”.

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“We have control of the emergency and the resources, but we must acknowledge that we are progressing slowly due to unfavourable weather conditions”, he added.

The minister explained that “the northern part of the San Juan reservoir is one of the areas of greatest concern. We hope that we can make progress today. We are going to be slightly optimistic”.

The Delegation of the Government in Madrid has informed that “the forest fire in the region has slowed down, but it is still active and not yet under control”.

This fire is already considered by experts to be the largest and most aggressive in the history of Spain.

The “worst fire in the history of the region”

The resident of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, visited the operations centre this Monday, to review the situation with the fires.

She confirmed that the fires “are not yet stabilised” and described the situation as “devilish”, primarily because “the fire in Ávila is complicating the situation around the San Juan reservoir”.

The fires, which began in two different municipalities in the western mountain range of Madrid, merged on Friday to form a single front. This has already affected 17 municipalities, a figure which could continue to increase.

Official data show that at least 28,000 hectares have been affected by the Madrid fire, with almost 32,000 people evacuated and around 21,000 confined.

Almost from the outset of the tragedy, Ayuso defined this fire as the “worst in the history of the Madrid region”.

This is the first time a fire in Madrid has resulted in the activation of Level 3 of the State Emergency Plan.

Ávila and Toledo

In Ávila, around 25,000 people have been evacuated and over 8,000 are in lockdown.

According to the latest data from the Ministry for Ecological Transition, the fire has damaged around 50,000 hectares so far and its perimeter is 160 kilometres long.

In the province of Toledo, at least 6,200 people have been evacuated and over 2,000 hectares have been destroyed.

European aid

Given the severity of the situation and at the request of the Spanish government, the European Commission's Crisis Management and Humanitarian Aid spokesperson, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, announced on Friday that four aircraft would be sent from Greece and Italy which are already helping to extinguish the fires.

In addition to this, Turkey has sent two more aircraft, while Portugal provided a contingent of 134 firefighters and 41 vehicles.

Official follow-up

Spanish president Pedro Sánchez visited Vall d’Uixó in the eastern region of Castellón on Monday, where a fire has affected more than 7,200 hectares and forced the evacuation of over 16,000 people.

He warned that “difficult hours lie ahead” in the fight against the fire, given the imminent heatwave expected across Spain, and urged everyone to be extreme cautious.

Meanwhile, Ayuso announced a €30 million urgent housing plan for those who have lost their primary residence due to the fire.

The regional government will set aside €1 million in aid for affected farmers and implement a plan to repair damaged regional roads.

On Sunday, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia visited the sports centre in the Madrid town of Villamanta, where many of those evacuated are staying, accompanied by the general commander of the Military Emergency Unit (UME), Francisco Javier Ramos; the Third Vice President of the Government and Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera; and Ayuso.

“Many have lost their belongings and are suffering greatly. The natural heritage is sustaining incalculable damage, and there are still many risks”, the King stressed, also thanking the men and women deployed to work professionally, devotedly and courageously.

Christian camps centre damaged

Pinos Reales, an evangelical camp and retreat centre with over 50 years of history, is located in San Martín de Valdeiglesias, one of the municipalities where the fires originated. It belongs to the Evangelismo en Acción (Evangelism in Action, EEA) ministry.

Shortly after the fire broke out, Ana María Huck Vangioni, a member of the EEA board and the current coordinator of Pinos Reales, told  Spanish news website, Protestante Digital that “the centre has not been damaged, according to the guard of a nearby farm”.

However, as the flames advanced and “before the surveillance cameras were cut off by a power outage", they were able to confirm that the fire had reached their facilities, Ana Maria explained.

“We don't know what to expect, but we worry about the ten full gas cylinders we have... We can't go at the moment because San Martín de Valdeiglesias is closed and its inhabitants are confined and evacuated”, says the Pinos Reales coordinator.

In the face of uncertainty about the future, Ana María believes that they will need “a lot of help in many different ways”.

“We have a full booking calendar until mid-December. We made a significant investment in the rehabilitation of the centre, which was closed for nine months. We obtained all the necessary health permits and are happy to be able to provide a service to more than 2,000 people since March, who honoured us with their trust, because serving churches and groups is a ministry for the Lord and His people, a privilege”, she says.

Above all, however, Ana María stresses that “prayer is the most powerful weapon”, and asks “that the Lord protects not only the ministry carried out by Pinos Reales, but above all the lives of many neighbours caught between the different fronts”.

Meanwhile, Benjamín Martín, director of Pinos Reales, calls on Christians to join them in “crying out to the Lord for His mercy, so that no lives are lost and it does not affect populated areas”.