<p><br /> Hundreds of people have been evacuated in villages and wildlife reserves in northern Portugal and Spain.<br /> </p><p><br /> A forest fire fanned by shifting gusts of wind killed two firemen in Spain. The blaze broke out Thursday night near a village of some 2,000 people in Pontevedra province.<br /> </p><p><br /> The fires which have now been brought under control have left over 250 acres of forest burnt and blackened.<br /> </p><p><br /> Meanwhile in neighbouring Portugal, rescue workers evacuated some 100 people from the Peneda-Geres National Park as wildfires in the north of the country intensified despite non-stop efforts by more than a thousand firefighters.<br /> </p><p><br /> Interior Minister Rui Pereira told a news briefing the situation in the arid northern woodlands "is comparable to a true theatre of war".<br /> </p><p><br /> In total, fire brigades were combating more than 30 fires in Portugal on Thursday afternoon.<br /> </p><p><br /> Officials said some 120 firemen with 20 trucks and four aircraft were working to put out the flames that threatened the homes of those evacuated in Vilar de Soente.<br /> </p><p><br /> Forest fires are common in Portugal and southern Europe in the summer months. Almost 10,000 fighters and 56 aircraft are on standby to deal with them this year.<br /> </p>
