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.

Portugal suffered its first death Friday from the fires raging there, as Spain's weather agency warned of a "very high to extreme risk" of more wildfires there during Europe's intense heatwave. Further east, Greece was still fighting blazes on one Aegean island, but the situation had improved for several other southern European countries.

Thousands of firefighters in Spain and Portugal battled several wildfires Thursday ahead of an expected rise in temperatures that could worsen the situation on the Iberian Peninsula. In central Spain,