Heavy rains have killed at least five people in northern China while Tropical Storm Maysak battered the country's southern coast on Saturday, toppling trees and submerging vehicles as rivers overflowed their banks. Simultaneously, hundreds of firefighters across southern Europe are battling fast-moving wildfires in Portugal, Greece, and Spain, with authorities issuing toxic smoke warnings in several regions. The dual disasters underscore the intensifying pattern of extreme weather events fueled by climate change across Asia and Europe.
In China, two villagers died in a mountain flash flood on Saturday evening in the eastern part of Inner Mongolia, with one drowning while herding cattle and the other swept away while attempting to drive livestock to safety. Three additional deaths were reported the same day in Fushun city in neighboring Liaoning province. In the south, Tropical Storm Maysak caused rivers to overflow in Guangxi's Fangchenggang city, submerging cars up to their roofs and prompting rescuers to deploy inflatable boats to reach trapped residents. Local officials described the flooding as the most severe in two decades.
The storm also crossed into Vietnam, where it knocked down trees and ripped metal roofs off buildings in the border town of Mong Cai on Saturday evening. Chinese meteorological authorities have issued continued warnings for heavy rainfall across multiple provinces, with hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas placed on alert for potential evacuation orders.
Across southern Europe, the wildfire situation has grown increasingly dire. In central Portugal's Vouzela area, more than 1,200 firefighters supported by nearly 400 vehicles and 15 aircraft struggled to contain a blaze that broke out on Thursday and had burned through 12,000 hectares by Sunday. Spain dispatched 120 firefighters and 45 vehicles as reinforcements on Friday, while firefighting aircraft from Italy and Spain were also deployed to assist Portuguese crews.
In Greece, a fast-moving fire at a recycling plant near the Oraiokastro suburb of Thessaloniki erupted Saturday evening, triggering evacuation alerts for three suburbs and a facility housing 157 people with special needs. Around 160 firefighters battled the flames through the night, with water-dropping aircraft joining the effort at dawn. Authorities urged residents across parts of Thessaloniki to remain indoors and seal their windows due to toxic smoke. A separate major blaze west of Athens prompted the deployment of more than 150 additional firefighters along with helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
In Spain's northeastern Girona region, a wildfire burning since Friday had consumed nearly 2,200 hectares with a perimeter stretching 40 kilometers. Firefighters reported being unable to bring the blaze under control by Sunday as strong winds continued to fan the flames. The European Forest Fire Information System has noted that 2026 is on track to be one of the worst wildfire seasons in recent memory for the Mediterranean region.
Climate scientists have pointed to rising global temperatures and shifting weather patterns as driving factors behind the simultaneous extreme events across continents. The combination of prolonged heat waves drying vegetation in southern Europe and intensified monsoon activity in East Asia reflects broader atmospheric disruptions linked to human-caused warming. Emergency management agencies in both regions have urged citizens to follow safety protocols and heed evacuation orders as conditions are expected to remain dangerous in the coming days.
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