According to preliminary estimates, more than 7,500 hectares of land, mainly covered with pine forests, are affected by the natural disaster, which may have been caused by deliberate arson.
Whoever committed it knew very well what he was doing, how and when he was doing it. It was night, which made it difficult to react quickly
– said Guillermo Fernández Vara, president of the province of Extremadura.
Some of the evacuees from the villages of Cadalso, Descargamaría, Robledillo de Gata and Ovejuela have been accommodated in nearby settlements, but many prefer to stay with their relatives until they can return home. In the meantime, residents in other settlements were asked to prepare to leave their homes if the flames could not be contained.
In addition to the firefighters, a special unit of the military was also involved in the extinguishing, helicopters and airplanes from the air also support the ground forces of around four hundred people. However, the work is greatly hampered by the wind of 50 kilometers per hour.
According to the data of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), forest fires have already affected 66,000 hectares of green areas in Spain this year.
Last year, the flames consumed 310,000 hectares, more than three times as much as the year before.
The cover image is an illustration. Cover image source: Getty Images
