Spain prepares for total solar eclipse amid wildfire fears

Spanish police are launching a large-scale operation and public safety campaign ahead of a rare total solar eclipse on August 12, which will coincide with one of the country’s periods most vulnerable to forest fires.

Local governments along the eclipse path across Spain, which offers the best viewing sites for the event in Europe, are seeking to manage the expected influx of six million people by designating 660 official viewing areas, as well as parking and camping zones.

Virginia Barcones, Secretary-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies at the Ministry of the Interior, told Reuters that authorities will deploy more than 35,000 police officers in a security operation aimed at mitigating risks associated with large gatherings in natural areas, including fires caused by discarded cigarettes.

Spain, along with France and Greece, is facing heatwaves and severe forest fires this summer, as Europe contends with increasingly dry conditions. In the town of Puebla de Lillo, north of Madrid, with a population of around 2,000, the group Monte en Pie - Forest Conservation staged a protest against planned events near forests.

The group argues that the eclipse will last only a few minutes, whereas the effects of a major forest fire can persist for decades.

Authorities estimate that around 1.5 million people may be on the roads during the day, heading to rural areas in northwestern and central Spain that lie within the path of the total eclipse.

National and local authorities are launching public awareness campaigns, warning via local media, social networks, and online visitor platforms against parking in unauthorized areas, littering, using barbecues, or venturing into rural areas prone to fire.