Authorities across southern Europe battled on Sunday to control wildfires burning across thousands of hectares of land in countries including Spain, Greece and France, where thousands of people have been evacuated in soaring temperatures. 

In Spain, helicopters dropped water on the flames as searing heat and often mountainous terrain made the job harder for firefighters. National weather agency AEMET issued high temperature warnings for Sunday, with highs of 42 degrees Celsius (108 Fahrenheit) forecast in Aragon, Navarra and La Rioja, in the north.