Four Britons are feared to have been killed in a major wildfire sweeping southern Spain as the death toll rose to 12 on Friday.

More than 500 firefighters were working to bring the blaze under control after it spread rapidly through a wooded area around the town of Los Gallardos in Almería province.

The flames have already torn through some 3,150 hectares of land in one of the worst forest fires recorded in Spain, and the deadliest in more than 20 years. At least 23 people are still missing, authorities said on Friday.

Andalusia’s head of emergencies, Antonio Sanz, said four people, who were likely to be British as the steering wheel of their car was on the right-hand side, had died in a vehicle while trying to escape.

Seven others were found dead after apparently abandoning their cars and attempting to flee on foot along a route that was not part of the evacuation plan, he said.

“They were walking … they had left their cars and were surely looking for an exit, an exit that was not the one planned … and the consequences have been terrible,” he said.

“Everything seems to indicate that … in the case of the deceased, we are dealing mostly or entirely with foreigners. Until their identities are determined, logically, it cannot be confirmed.”

Mr Sanz said it was “the most devastating fire to date in our region”, describing the situation as an “unprecedented tragedy”.

“The pain is immense. Andalusia is in mourning, and our hearts go out to Almería and all those affected,” he said.

Another four people were being treated in hospital for serious burns, Mr Sanz said, while more than 140 had been rehoused as a result of the fire.

Pedro Ridao, mayor of Antas, one of the affected neighbouring towns, told TVE that 80 people had been evacuated in his community so far.

He indicated the fire in his town was under control and said he hoped they would be able to stabilise the blaze by air as it had taken hold in “mountainous terrain with many ravines”, making it difficult to access.

He said that the fire may have started due to a cable that came loose and fell in an area of ​​dry vegetation.

Euronews reported that around 800 people were evacuated in the aftermath of the blaze, including nearly 200 to temporary shelters.

Authorities were continuing search operations amid concerns that more people could be missing.

The Spanish prime minister said he felt “enormous sadness and devastation” over the consequences of the fire, offering his condolences to the families of those killed and wishing a speedy recovery to the injured.

In a post on X, Pedro Sanchez said emergency services, security forces and the military emergency unit (UME) had been mobilised to combat the blaze and urged residents to exercise caution.

The death toll makes it Spain’s deadliest wildfire since 2005, when 11 firefighters were killed in a blaze in the central province of Guadalajara that was sparked by a barbecue and burned thousands of hectares of forest.

That disaster, considered one of the country’s worst wildfire tragedies, prompted major changes to Spain’s wildfire prevention and emergency response systems.

Early summer heatwaves across western Europe in May and June have parched vast areas of land, making them particularly vulnerable to wildfires this year.

Europe is warming at more than twice the global average, the World Meteorological Organisation has said, making prolonged heat episodes increasingly likely.

Britain’s Foreign Office was approached for comment.