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José Antonio Bruña can be found on a elevated area near the small community of a rural settlement.

He points to the exact spot where a thunderbolt struck a few periods earlier, triggering a blaze with disastrous results.

"This August has been a calamity for me personally, but also for regional agriculturists and the whole community here," he says. "Having lived 47 years and I've never seen a fire that intense."

Ultimately destroying over 20,000 hectares of land and leading to thousands of people to be relocated from towns in this rural corner of north-western Spain.

But it was just one of several vast fires which have ravaged Spain this period, destroying 0.8% of the country's landmass.

The most heavily affected zones were here in the western north, including the regions of a northern region and another community, along with the western region of a pastoral territory.

Impact on Beekeeping

Beekeeping, which is an significant industry in countryside this part of the nation, was one of the primary victims of the summer.

Thankfully, the beekeeper's hives are unharmed, because the fire halted just a short distance away from the land where he houses them.

"I estimate that this year I'm going to forfeit 50% of my honey output, without a doubt, because of the fires, and the following year the same, or even more severe," Mr Bruña says.

The non-existence of structural damage to his hives means he cannot claim insurance.

He is contemplating moving many of them to other locations, in the expectation of bettering the bees' prospects of survival and lessening his future losses.

Animal Herders Likewise Impacted

A great number of livestock farmers have also been forced to move their animals in recent weeks, both to avoid fires and to make certain they can access undamaged pasture.

"The situation was dire for farmers [this summer], it was one fire after another," says a cattle farmer from a small community.

He has lost around 30 animals this summer, most recently having to sacrifice 11 animals which had suffered severe burns.

"The situation has had a big financial impact, but the biggest impact of all is that we lie awake at night," he notes. "It's a constant tension."

Even though farmers look forward to receive insurance payouts, he believes there will be a ripple cost.

"Compensation might arrive, but next year, instead of costing us, for example, €5,000, insurance premiums will total €10,000 or €15,000," he says. "As insurance companies seek to avoid to lose money."

Economic Impact and Travel Industry Setbacks

An agricultural representative body estimated in August that the industry had suffered damages worth at least €600m.

The biggest costs have been burned fields and properties and deaths of animals.

Another main economic sufferer of this summer's fires has been tourism, which accounts for 13% of Spanish GDP.

While most of the seaside regions associated with tourism escaped fires this summer, the southerly province of a tourist hotspot was an outlier.

And this summer's main wildfire epicenters, in the west and north-west, have fostered rural tourism in recent years.

The largest glacial lake, the biggest glacial reservoir in the the peninsula, is a major local landmark.

However the expansion of the fire that began in Porto de Sanabria in mid-August caused it to be shut down.

"In August, this area was at peak visitation in terms of tourism," says Miguel Ángel Martos. "And then, on 18 August, it fell to 10% of capacity."

For holidaymakers this was inconvenient. But for many residents it meant financial catastrophe.

"Local authorities has said it will pay me €5,500," he remarks, sarcastically. "It will be necessary to come up with some other kind of payment because I was not willing to close, they compelled me to."

Larger Social Repercussions

The past few months has emphasized the well-known schism between urban and non-urban Spain.

A long time of migration from rural areas to urban hubs means that 90% of the Spanish population now inhabits just 30% of its territory.

The remainder has become known as "empty Spain", where a scattered population has often complained about a lack of infrastructure.

These blazes, which have been particularly uncontainable this year, only compound that frustration.

"It's hard enough as it is to survive because of the price of animal feed and fuel – every day it's more hard for farmers to get by," he comments. "In addition, this takes place."