At least 25 people were killed and 20 others injured in a huge forest fire in central Portugal.

16 of the people who died were inside vehicles that were caught by the flames and three others were next to a cemetery, according to the Secretary of State for Internal Administration Jorge Gomes, reports the TSF Radio.

Several hundred firefighters and over 100 vehicles were dispatched late on Saturday to tackle the blaze, which broke out in the afternoon in the municipality of Pedrogao Grande before spreading fast across several fronts.

Portugal was sweltering under a severe heatwave on Saturday, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius in several regions.