MADRID: Spain late Thursday declared a national emergency in the Madrid region and in the province of Avila, near the capital, in the wake of several wildfires burning out of control. The measure, announced by the interior ministry, aims to speed up the deployment of resources to fight the fires, which in the Madrid region have forced the evacuation of 10,000 people, and places the response to the crisis in the hands of a military emergency unit.

Officials say the blaze, which has forced about 1,200 people to evacuate and has burned at least 30,000 hectares of land, is one of the most complex to affect the country in years.

You can smell the fire dozens of kilometres away, and its smoke has partly blocked out the sun: the huge wildfire north of Madrid has unnerved officials and evacuees alike.