Villages evacuated as ‘very large’ wildfire
ravages south-west Spain
Hundreds of firefighters struggle to contain blaze
across at least 7,500 hectares in northern Extremadura
The environment minister, Teresa Ribera, said the
effects of the climate emergency were becoming increasingly evident. “Spain is
a country that is used to periods of drought but there’s no doubt that, as a
consequence of the climate change we’re experiencing, we’re seeing far more
frequent and intense events and phenomena,” she said.
Sam Jones
in Madrid
@swajones
Fri 19 May
2023 14.51 BST
Hundreds of
civilian and military firefighters are tackling a wildfire in south-west Spain
that has burned across at least 7,500 hectares (18,500 acres) of land and
forced the evacuation of more than 500 people since it began on Wednesday
evening.
Efforts to
fight the “very large and difficult” fire in the Las Hurdes and Sierra de Gata
areas of northern Extremadura are being hindered by strong winds, according to
the regional government, which believes the blaze was started deliberately.
People in
three villages – Cadalso, Descargamaría and Robledillo de Gata – have been
evacuated and three main roads closed.
The
regional government said more than 400 firefighters, including members of the
military emergencies unit, had been deployed and were using 10 earthmovers, 14
aircraft and 23 road vehicles to try to bring the fire under control.
Spain’s
prime minister cancelled a campaign trip to the region in advance of next
week’s local and regional elections. Pedro Sánchez said he was following the
situation closely and offered those affected his full support.
Begoña
García, the head of Extremadura’s agriculture department, asked people in the
area to let police know if they had seen anything suspicious, adding that
residents “know that this was done on purpose”.
Local
emergency services also asked people to keep out of the affected areas so as
not to clog up evacuation routes.
Marcos
Hernández, who lives in Pinofranqueado, the municipality where the fire began,
told the Efe news agency that people in the area felt “very angry” and
powerless as the blaze continued.
Fires in
2003 devoured more than 8,000 hectares of land in Las Hurdes and blazes in the
same area burned through more than 5,000 hectares last July.
According to the European Forest Fire Information
System, more than 315,000 hectares of land in Spain was engulfed by wildfires
last year.
The Spanish government last week approved a €2.2bn
(£1.9bn) plan to help farmers and consumers cope with an enduring drought that
has been exacerbated by the hottest and driest April on record.
The
environment minister, Teresa Ribera, said the effects of the climate emergency
were becoming increasingly evident. “Spain is a country that is used to periods
of drought but there’s no doubt that, as a consequence of the climate change
we’re experiencing, we’re seeing far more frequent and intense events and phenomena,”
she said.
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário