Wildfires in Spain's Jarilla brought under control, firefighting in final stage

China

Wildfires in Spain's Jarilla brought under control, firefighting in final stage

2025-08-23 16:18 Last Updated At：23:17

Multiple wildfires in Jarilla, Spain's Extremadura autonomous community, have been largely brought under control after burning for over 10 days, and firefighting efforts are entering their final stage, local authorities confirmed on Thursday.

Jarilla, located in central-western Spain near Portugal, is the area most severely affected by wildfires this year across the entire Iberian Peninsula.

As evening temperatures drop and relative humidity rises, conditions for firefighting have improved significantly, according to the government in Extremadura.

On-site personnel reported that there are currently no significant flames visible at the fire scene, with only a few spots experiencing re-ignition.

Rescue teams will conduct air-ground coordination to extinguish forest fires. However, due to the extensive size of the affected area, firefighting efforts continue to face significant challenges.

"Currently, our firefighting team, in collaboration with support from various administrative levels, is focused on clearing and reinforcing the perimeter of the fire to prevent re-ignition. Given the extensive scale of this wildfire, with a perimeter of 160 kilometers, it will take several days or even weeks to fully manage the cleanup," said Miguel Angel Morillo, head of the Jarilla Forest Fire Emergency Command.

Although the wildfires have not yet been fully extinguished, several roads that were previously closed due to the fire have reopened. Some residents have begun to return home to attempt to clean up and repair damaged houses and farmland, and mutual assistance within the community is getting underway.

"The power was quickly restored after a brief blackout. Although the water reservoir is dry, the mayor personally distributed drinking water today. Anyone in need can go to the city hall to collect it," said Maria, a local villager.

"When we returned for the first time, everything was in ruins. The houses in the countryside had been burned down, and all the cherry trees and other trees were gone. The area was deserted. We held a meeting to gather all the affected people. They said that this region had been designated as a disaster area, and the government would do its best to help," said Jose, another villager.

China flu activity declines for fourth week, no new pathogens detected: official

Influenza activity in China has declined for four consecutive weeks, with recent tests showing common pathogens and no evidence of new infectious diseases, the National Health Commission (NHC) said on Tuesday.

At its first press briefing of 2026, the commission reported that flu activity nationwide remains moderate at the moment.

According to Xin Li, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, respiratory samples collected from sentinel hospitals indicated that the influenza virus was the most common pathogen, accounting for 27.4 percent of cases, followed by respiratory syncytial virus at 8.8 percent and rhinovirus at 5.7 percent.

"Influenza activity in China has declined for four consecutive weeks and remains at a moderate level overall. Analysis of nationwide fever clinic consultations, influenza-like illness cases at sentinel hospitals, and multi-pathogen testing shows that all detected pathogens are known common ones, with no evidence of unknown pathogens or new infectious diseases," Xin told the press.

Data from sentinel hospitals indicated flu activity was falling across provincial-level regions, while reports of school outbreaks dropped for five consecutive weeks. Laboratory tests showed that 97.3 percent of positive influenza samples were H3N2 subtype viruses.