Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Andalucia president Juanma Moreno put political differences aside on Monday as they visited the command centre overseeing the response to the devastating Almeria wildfire.

The two leaders stressed the importance of cooperation between all levels of government as they toured the affected area, where the blaze has claimed 13 lives and burned around 7,000 hectares.

Moreno thanked Sanchez for travelling to Almeria and praised the efforts of local councils, Almeria’s provincial authority, the Spanish government, the Military Emergency Unit (UME), INFOCA firefighters and all emergency crews involved in tackling the fire.

He said favourable weather conditions had created a ‘window of opportunity’ that allowed firefighters to stabilise the blaze and expressed confidence it would be brought under control later on Monday.

The Andalucian leader also warned that this summer could prove particularly difficult, revealing that the amount of land burned in Andalucia so far this year is already three times higher than during the same period in 2025.

Sanchez began by offering his condolences to the families of those killed and wishing the injured a speedy recovery before praising the coordination between local, regional and national authorities.

‘When we speak about the State, we are talking about everyone – mayors, provincial councils, the Junta de Andalucia and the Government of Spain,’ he said, describing the response as an example of institutional unity.

The Prime Minister added that the Spanish government had provided all the resources requested by Andalucian authorities and used the visit to renew calls for a national agreement to tackle climate change.

‘The climate emergency kills,’ Sanchez warned. ‘We must not only react, we also have to prevent.’

Both leaders urged the public to remain vigilant as Spain heads into what they warned could be another challenging summer for wildfires.