Spain has begun lifting evacuation and lockdown orders across several wildfire-hit regions after firefighters made significant progress in containing some of the country’s most destructive forest fires in recent history, although officials have warned that an approaching heatwave could still threaten the fragile improvements.
Authorities started easing restrictions on Tuesday in parts of central and eastern Spain, allowing thousands of residents to return home and begin assessing the damage caused by fires that have forced around 60,000 people to flee and burned approximately 77,000 hectares of land. ALSO READ: Wildfire emergency deepens as royals visit evacuees and new Valencia blaze forces thousands to flee.
Spain’s interior ministry announced that evacuation orders for 13 municipalities in two fire-affected areas of central Spain would be lifted from 5pm on Tuesday.
The decision means that ‘residents can begin returning to their homes,’ the ministry told Spanish media, although it did not specify how many people were affected.
The announcement prompted an immediate response from local residents. At a Guardia Civil checkpoint near the villages of Chapinería and Navas del Rey west of Madrid – both of which had been completely evacuated several days earlier – a queue of more than 20 vehicles quickly formed as people rushed to return home, according to reports.
The easing of restrictions comes after Spain declared a national emergency last week as multiple wildfires swept across central and eastern parts of the country, consuming vast areas of woodland and countryside. ALSO READ: Spain declares first national wildfire emergency as blazes rage, while France battles mass evacuations.
The worst of the fires have been concentrated west of Madrid, particularly in the province of Ávila (Castilla y León), where more than 50,000 hectares have been destroyed.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said emergency crews were making encouraging progress.
‘We are at the stage of containing the fire,’ he told reporters at the emergency command centre in Navalcarnero.
‘Our concern is to continue consolidating the fire and reach stabilisation,’ he added, while cautioning that weather conditions were expected to become ‘difficult’ as temperatures rose again later in the week.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez also expressed cautious optimism about the situation, saying firefighters were finally beginning to gain the upper hand.
‘We are indeed turning the tide, and we can begin to see light at the end of the tunnel in the fight against these fires,’ he said.
Restrictions have also been eased in Spain’s eastern Valencia region. In the province of Castellón, confinement orders in the municipality of Vall d’Uixó were lifted on Tuesday morning, while the regional government also ended restrictions in neighbouring La Vilavella, allowing around 6,000 residents to resume normal daily life. ALSO READ: Guardia Civil arrest tractor driver over alleged negligence as Spain’s wildfire crisis deepens.
Although approximately 16,000 people were displaced across Castellón province, officials said the wildfire’s advance had slowed considerably, enabling authorities to begin restoring access to affected communities.
The improving situation comes despite growing concern over another spell of extreme weather. Spain’s state meteorological agency, AEMET, has forecast a fresh heatwave beginning on Wednesday and lasting until at least the end of the week.
Temperatures are expected to reach as high as 42C in the northeast of the country and around 39C across central Spain, raising fears that hot, dry and windy conditions could reignite or accelerate existing fires.
The latest heatwave is also expected to affect neighbouring France, where firefighters are continuing to battle major blazes before another period of intense summer heat.
Across both countries, wildfires have destroyed large areas of forest, damaged homes and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate.
Europe has endured successive heatwaves and severe drought throughout the year, conditions that scientists largely attribute to human-caused climate change. Earlier wet weather encouraged abundant vegetation growth, but prolonged high temperatures have since dried out the landscape, creating tinderbox conditions that have allowed fires to spread rapidly.
Enjoying the news from Spain in English? Add us as a preferred news source in Google.
Subscribe to the Weekly Newsletter from Spain in English.
#IncendiosForestalesEspaña | La Guardia Civil levanta el control de acceso en Navalagamella y los vecinos ya pueden regresar a sus casas tras cuatro días evacuados
Lo cuenta @juan_giraldez_ en #Canal24horas pic.twitter.com/lINZ1Ag6kC
— RTVE Noticias (@rtvenoticias) July 28, 2026
🚨DESESCALADA | Se establece el fin de la evacuación, a partir de las 17:00 horas, en:
COMUNIDAD DE MADRID
📍Cadalso de los Vidrios
📍Cenicientos
📍Navalagamella
📍Navas del Rey
📍Rozas de Puerto Real
📍Aldea del Fresno
📍Chapinería
📍Colmenar del Arroyo pic.twitter.com/wLWTlLTCPs— Ministerio del Interior (@interiorgob) July 28, 2026
🚨 DESESCALADA | Fin del confinamiento desde las 17:00 en:
COMUNIDAD DE MADRID
📍Villa del Prado, excepto en la urbanización del Encinar del Alberche.
📍San Martín de Valdeiglesias, excepto las urbanizaciones Costa de Madrid, San Ramón, Javacruz, La Javariega y Veracruz. pic.twitter.com/9K94GyAJBD
— Ministerio del Interior (@interiorgob) July 28, 2026
Ocho municipios madrileños recuperan a las 17:00 h el acceso a sus viviendas tras levantar la orden de evacuación: Cadalso de los Vidrios, Cenicientos, Navalagamella, Navas del rey, Rozas de Puerto Real,
Aldea del fresno, Chapineria
Y Colmenar del arroyo.Se levanta también el… pic.twitter.com/nU6DP8zJtu
— Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) July 28, 2026
Click here to get your business activity or services listed on our DIRECTORY.