MADRID (AP) — 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.

Fire crews in Greece, Spain, and Portugal are racing to contain wildfires. Calmer winds on Thursday have helped slow the blazes.

Spain on Thursday mourned its third wildfire death this week and Greece began beating back a blaze threatening its third-largest city as an unrelenting heatwave stoked tinderbox conditions in southern Europe.