Vouzela — At least 36 people have died in fires ravaging forests in northern and central Portugal over the past 24 hours, rescuers said Monday, after three people were killed in Spain in blazes sparked by arsonists and fanned by Hurricane Ophelia. The 36 deaths, which were confirmed by Portugal’s national civil protection agency and included a one-month-old baby, come four months after 64 people were killed in the deadliest fire in the country’s history in June. "There are still places where security services have not yet managed to reach," civil protection agency spokeswoman Patricia Gaspar said, adding that the toll remained preliminary for that reason. She said seven people were still missing due to the fires, which have also injured at least 63 people, including 16 critically. The 524 registered outbreaks of fire in Portugal, by far the most since 2006, were caused by "higher than average temperatures for the season and the cumulative effect of drought", Gaspar said. Portuguese ...
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