A heatwave with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius, or 104 Fahrenheit, on several days this month was expected to last through Monday.

The fires raging across Portugal claimed their first victim on Friday, when the former mayor of the eastern town of

Firefighters in Spain, Portugal and Greece battled ongoing wildfires Friday, an important religious holiday in all three countries, as persistent hot, dry conditions challenged efforts to contain the blazes.