40 die in fires in Portugal, Spain; Rain helps firefighters


              A house burns in the village of Pinheiro dos Abracos near Oliveira do Hospital, northern Portugal, Monday, Oct. 16 2017. Late season wildfires that broke out over the weekend in Portugal have killed at least 35 people, including a 1-month-old infant, authorities said Monday, making 2017 by far the deadliest year on record for forest blazes in the country. (AP Photo/Sergio Azenha)
A house burns in the village of Pinheiro dos Abracos near Oliveira do Hospital, northern Portugal, Monday, Oct. 16 2017. Late season wildfires that broke out over the weekend in Portugal have killed at least 35 people, including a 1-month-old infant, authorities said Monday, making 2017 by far the deadliest year on record for forest blazes in the country. (AP Photo/Sergio Azenha)

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - Rain and lower temperatures are helping emergency teams in Portugal and Spain fight the forest fires that killed at least 40 people over the weekend.

Civil Protection authorities say wildfires in Portugal were under control by Tuesday morning, after at least 36 people died and dozens were injured. Portugal, which still has seven people missing in the blazes, began three days of national mourning on Tuesday.

In northwest Spain, where four people have died in the fires, regional authorities in Galicia say 27 forest fires are still out of control Tuesday, seven of them close to inhabited areas.

Investigations are still underway to find the cause for the late-season wave of hundreds of forest fires, which officials in both countries are blaming mostly on arsonists.

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