By Guillermo Martinez and Ana Cantero VILLARDEVÓS (Reuters) -Scorching heat hampered efforts to contain 20 major wildfires across Spain on Sunday, prompting the government to deploy an additional 500 troops from the military emergency unit to support firefighting operations.

Firefighters battle intense flames as Spain faces one of its worst wildfire seasons in decades:::: Porto, Spain:: Castrillo de Cabrera, SpainThe helicopters can be seen dousing areas of fire as ground crews used hoses in an attempt to contain the flames.

Spain is deploying an additional 500 soldiers to combat raging wildfires, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced on Sunday, as the country grapples with a prolonged period of scorching weather. The new deployment adds to the more than 1,400 troops already battling blazes across parched woodland.