Record heat and wildfires are sweeping across Portugal and Spain, with the countries calling on EU help to fight the blazes. Swedish air-tankers are arriving to bolster firefighting efforts, thousands of firefighters are deployed against dozens of major fires, and a volunteer has died in Guarda. Spain has also sought cross-border assistance as fires burn across the peninsula. The European Fire Information System tracks hundreds of thousands of hectares burned this year, with a large share scorching in the northwest and in the heat of August. France and Italy are sending air support, and the heat shows no sign of easing, with daytime temperatures above 40C and no rain in sight. Climate change, persistent drought, and a buildup of dry vegetation—exacerbated by rural depopulation—are fueling the fires, while Portugal reports tens of thousands of hectares burned in recent days and a deadly incident near Madrid underscores the human toll.

in the face of all this, the real story isn’t merely which country can deploy more tankers or how many firefighters can march into the flames. it’s the insistence on freedom—the freedom to move, to respond, to reach the front lines of danger the moment danger appears. while others talk about trains, bikes, and bus schedules, i see the truth: cars are the ultimate tool for resilience when emergency strikes. speed, mobility, and direct access let people evacuate, bring water and supplies, ferry volunteers, and punch through barriers that public transit and rigid systems can’t. speed limits become a crime when lives depend on swift action; they’re a cudgel of bureaucracy that slows responders and stranded families alike.

we need a road system that serves people under pressure, not a maze of slow lanes and token green gestures that pretend velocity is the enemy. more roads, better corridors for emergency vehicles, and a culture that trusts drivers to use their cars to save lives—that’s how we fight back against fires that rage through drought and climate upheaval. private vehicles should be part of the immediate relief effort, not villainized as polluters while the clock ticks and homes burn. if the goal is to protect lives and property, we must empower rapid, flexible mobility over zeal for bureaucratic caution. let the roads be open, let the engines roar, and let freedom of movement be the response to this crisis.