Villagers in north-western Spain that endured devastating summer blazes have received an extraordinary Christmas gift through the country's famous festive lottery.
La Bañeza, a town in the León province, secured €468million (£408million) in winnings, while nearby Villablino scooped €200million (£175million) from the jackpot.
The windfall arrives at a crucial moment for these struggling areas.
Javier Carrera, La Bañeza's mayor, told Spanish media the prize "means for La Bañeza an injection of excitement and hope."
Villablino's mayor, Mario Rivas, echoed the sentiment and said: "We needed some good news."
A third León town, La Pola de Gordón, shared €60million (£52million) among its 3,000 residents.This year proved exceptionally harsh for Spain's forested north-western regions.
During the summer months, firefighters tackled massive infernos across León and neighbouring Galicia, with flames ultimately scorching 0.8 per cent of the nation's entire land area.
La Bañeza faced additional economic turmoil when a sugar-beet processing plant shut its doors, leaving dozens of workers without employment.
Javier Carrera, La Bañeza's mayor, told Spanish media the prize 'means for La Bañeza an injection of excitement and hope'
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For Villablino, the tragedies extended beyond the fires.
Five local men lost their lives in two separate mining incidents in the adjacent Asturias region.
Mayor Rivas acknowledged the weight of these losses: "It doesn't make up for the loss of the lives of our friends, but this shows us that there can also be good news."
The lottery draw itself captivated the nation, with viewers watching as schoolchildren Alba Yadira Machaca Tapia and Italy Andrea Blanco Flores announced the winning number at the Teatro Real in Madrid shortly before 11am.
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The lottery draw itself captivated the nation
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Among the fortunate recipients was Maribel Martín, whose €400,000 (£349,000) ticket transformed her Christmas.
Her son telephoned with the news while she was out buying groceries.
"We were really down and 200million (£175million) is a wonderful thing," she said, adding that she intends to "spread it around a bit and enjoy life."
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