A forest fire fanned by high winds has forced the evacuation of about 4,000 residents on the Canary Island of La Palma.
Flames raging on steep hillsides south-east of the island’s dormant San Antonio volcano have engulfed several houses and could damage wildlife habitats.
A plume of smoke rose from the island to an estimated height of more than 3,300 feet yesterday and could be seen clearly from aircraft landing at La Palma airport.
The cause of the fire is unknown. Several days of high temperatures have contributed to dry conditions on the normally verdant La Palma — one of the least developed and greenest of Spain’s Canary Islands, off the west African coast.
Nearly all the island’s firefighting forces, including several aircraft, have been deployed to combat the blaze at three points around the town of Fuencaliente.
Spain sent a Military Emergency Unit from the nearby island of Tenerife, and a battalion from a mainland military base near Seville, the Interior Ministry said.
The ministry said 52 people were evacuated by boat from an area known for rare Canary pine forests and vineyards.
Elsewhere, a smaller fire has been controlled on the nearby island of La Gomera, 18 miles south-east of La Palma.
On the mainland, fire crews were combating four wildfires, from Candamo in northern Asturias to Cortegana in south-western Huelva, the ministry said.
So far this summer seven people have been killed in wildfires that have consumed an estimated 75,000 hectares of forest and farmland in Spain according to the Environment Ministry.
AP