A forest fire in central Spain forced 265 people to be evacuated from their homes on Wednesday, officials said.

The fire broke out near the village of Chequilla in the Alto Tajo forest park in the Castilla-la-Mancha region east of Madrid, an official in the regional agriculture ministry told AFP.

About 100 people were evacuated from Chequilla and 165 from the nearby village of Alcoroches, the official said, adding that 71 vehicles were deployed in fighting the fire.

Officials were not immediately able to confirm how much land had been burned.

Spain is at higher risk of forest fires than ever this summer after suffering its driest winter in 70 years.

A fire killed four people last week in the northeast near the French border and hundreds of people were evacuated on the island of Tenerife the week before.

The country's biggest fire so far this year ravaged 50,000 hectares (124,000 acres) in the eastern region of Valencia in early July.