More than 200 soldiers are involved in battling an out-of-control wildfire on the island of Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, Spain, which has already devastated an area equivalent to more than 3,000 football pitches.
The fire, which has already burned 3,273 hectares of forest in eight municipalities, recently forced the evacuation of the population of El Sauzal and Santa Úrsula from their homes. About four thousand people are confined to the place of La Esperanza.
Thousands of residents were trapped or forced to flee as wildfires rip through the Spanish island of Tenerife https://t.co/bPnbzPOYma pic.twitter.com/fdBLpifTra
– Reuters (@Reuters) August 18, 2023
According to the Spanish Ministry of Defense, the army has been mainly active in the defense of scattered homes in the areas of Pista del Rayo and La Esperanza and in reconnaissance flights.
While the fire is still out of control, some lines of defense activated during the firefighting effort are beginning to pay off.according to the President of the Government of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo.
#BREAK: Wildfires spread tonight in La Orotava, Tenerife, Spain. pic.twitter.com/DNeaVXiwWs
– Jack Straw (@JackStr42679640) August 18, 2023
Source: DN
