More than 20 dead from forest fires in central Portugal

The death toll in forest fires raging in central Portugal has reached 57, officials said on Sunday.

Numerous dead were trapped in their cars as flames swept over a road.

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Firefighters work to put out a forest fire near Bouca, in central Portugal.

Brandao said that "at 3:30 a.m.my mother-in-law woke me up quickly and we never went to sleep again".

He said, though the investigations are still underway, he believed that recent high temperatures may have also contributed to the fires.

Juncker wrote in the letter that "Our thoughts are with all the victims, their families and all the fearless soldiers of peace that in a very hard terrain and under challenging circumstances continue to fight this bad fire".

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa said that Spanish rescuers would assist in efforts to control the blazes.

The blaze spread Saturday onto Pedrogao Grande town, forcing residents to try and leave the town to escape towering flames.

Dozens of others are said to have been injured, with four firefighters reported to be among those most seriously hurt.

About 60 forest fires broke out across Portugal overnight and around 1,700 firefighters are working to put them out.

Mr Costa said that they are witnessing a bad tragedy.

Mr Costa said firefighting crews are having difficulties in approaching the area because the flames are "very intense".

The fire comes as temperatures soar in Portugal, with officials warning the public of temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius.

Portugal, like most southern European countries, is prone to forest fires in the dry summer months.

"The priority now is to save those people who could still be in danger".