Thousands of firefighters on Friday battled wildfires in France, Portugal and Spain in the face of scorching heatwaves as Britain braced for "extreme" heat in the coming days.

Swathes of southwest Europe are enduring their second heatwave in weeks as scientists say such extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change. 

The UK's meteorological agency on Friday issued its first ever "red" warning for exceptional heat, forecasting record highs of 40 degrees Celsius next week.

"Exceptional, perhaps record-breaking temperatures are likely early next week," Met Office chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen said.

Fires ravaging remote mountain forests in northern Morocco have killed at least one person and forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 families, officials said on Friday.

Fanned by strong winds, the fires that broke out on Wednesday have destroyed 1,600 hectares (nearly 4,000 acres) of woodland in the provinces of Larache, Ouezzane, Taza and Tetouan, the authorities said.

"It's absolutely crazy to stick yourself to the road with superglue," admits Lina Schinkoethe.

And yet, the 19-year-old recently landed in jail for doing just that, in protest at what she believes is the German government's failure to act against climate change.

More than 3,000 firefighters battled alongside ordinary Portuguese citizens desperate to save their homes from several wildfires that raged across the European country on Thursday, fanned by extreme temperatures and drought conditions linked to climate change.

The central part of the country has been particularly hard hit by a spate of blazes this week. In the village of Bemposta, residents used garden hoses to spray down their lawns and the roofs of their houses in hope that they could save them from the raging wall of red flames that approached through the wooden hills as dusk fell on Wednesday.

Countries on Africa's east coast are increasingly turning to climate funding initiatives to boost livelihoods of Oceanside communities, aid biodiversity and take climate action.

On the margins of the high-level political forum on sustainable development currently underway at the United Nations headquarters in New York, African coastal and island states and conservation groups outlined plans to boost ocean conservation and economic development through a system of " blue bonds" — a method of financing projects that would also benefit ocean health.

The German government unveiled a new package of climate measures Wednesday to close the emissions gap in the transport and housing sectors as part of the country's plan to become carbon neutral by 2045.

Transport Minister Volker Wissing said his department planned to boost the installation of electric vehicle charging stations, expand public transport and build more bicycle lanes in the hopes that people will leave their gasoline-powered cars at home.

A spate of wildfires is scorching Western Europe, with firefighters battling blazes in Portugal, Spain and southern France on Wednesday amid an unusual heat wave that authorities are linking to climate change.

In Portugal, Civil Protection commander André Fernandes said that multiple fires have caused the evacuation of more than 600 people. About 120 people needed medical treatment, with two people — one civilian and one firefighter — suffering serious injuries, Fernandes said.

Several areas of Spain were put on high alert Wednesday as temperatures were set to rise again with parts of western Europe suffering under a second heatwave in a matter of weeks.

Temperatures were set to reach 44 degrees Celsius (111 Fahrenheit) in some parts of Spain, which has been sweltering since the heatwave started at the weekend. It is expected to last until Sunday. 

Firefighters in Portugal on Monday contained two forest fires that ravaged the center of the country which is under a state of emergency due to an ongoing heatwave.