Three Medieval Kings Escape Wildfires in Spain

Spain just pulled off an unusual evacuation: the remains of three medieval kings. As a fast-moving wildfire closed in on the cliffside San Juan de la Pena monastery in Aragón on Thursday, emergency teams headed to the 10th-century complex to retrieve historical items, reports AFP. Ceremonial garments from an 18th-century count were removed first, and a second mission brought out the remains of Aragón's first three kings, who ruled between 1035 and 1104, along with several historic paintings, per Reuters.

The royal remains were transferred about 50 miles south to the provincial museum in Huesca for safekeeping. The blaze in northern Spain has scorched more than 22,000 acres and forced residents from 16 towns, though the monastery was still standing Friday. Another fire in Huelva, in the south, has consumed roughly 75,000 acres and displaced about 700 people.