Spain: 5.000 burned hectares in Catalonia

[recyclinage]

Spain: 5.000 burned hectares in Catalonia

A fire that devastated more than 5.000 hectares in the Lerida region of Catalonia resulted in the death of a man whose body was found near his car by firefighters.

He is an elderly man who died not far from the town of Agramunt where the flames, fanned by a fairly strong wind, mainly burned agricultural land, the daily newspapers El Pais and La Vanguardia said on their websites. Firefighters continued their fight against this fire, not yet controlled, and other smaller homes in Catalonia overnight. Wind and a small fire that broke out nearby also disrupted the Benicassim pop and rock music festival on Friday evening, not far from Valencia, local media said. The biggest fire in the summer so far in Spain has burned some 4.000 hectares in the Almeria region and had been brought under control on Thursday with the help of major air assets. (GFR)

msn news source

[recyclinage]

Spain: fires still active, more than 17.000 hectares burned

(AFP) - 1 hour ago

TERUEL, Spain - Several fires were still active Friday in Spain, where more than 17.000 hectares of vegetation have gone up in smoke since the beginning of the week and five firefighters have died, we learned from regional authorities.

Aragon (north-east) remained the most affected region, with nearly 10.600 hectares burned, in particular in the province of Teruel. Some 500 firefighters and specialized agents were still fighting the flames on Friday with the help of several planes, the regional government said in a statement.

Temperatures are expected to reach 35 ° C during the day, with wind, according to the press release. A fire truck driver died Thursday while trying to put out the fire.

A new fire broke out Thursday evening in the Sierra de Cabrera, in the province of Almeria in Andalusia (south).

More than 1.500 people were evacuated from their homes near the fire. Some were able to return home Friday morning.

"The weather conditions remain unfavorable, with temperatures which could reach 45 ° C and a relatively low humidity", indicated the regional government, specifying that "the height of the flames decreased during the night".

In Horta de Sant Joan in Catalonia (northeast), the fire that killed four firefighters on Tuesday and burned 1.200 hectares was finally "in the control phase" on Friday morning.

"The wind has calmed down and the flames are no longer advancing. The extinguishing work could take another two days," a spokesman for the Catalonia firefighters told AFP.

In Castile and Leon (north), the regional government has estimated the area burned in the Treviño region at 3.000 hectares. The fire has stabilized since Thursday. In this same region, 1.200 hectares were burned in the province of Soria.

One of the two fires declared in the province of Cuenca in Castile-La Mancha (center) was controlled on Friday and the other still active. Some 3.000 hectares have been burned.

Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved

google news source[/ Quote]

[recyclinage]

Spain: favorable development of the main fires

(AFP) - 1 hour ago

MADRID - The majority of the main fires that have already burned more than 17.000 hectares across Spain were stabilized on Saturday morning, according to the authorities of the various regions. Event

In Aragon (northeast), the most affected region, with nearly 11.700 hectares burned in the province of Teruel, five of the seven fires identified were stabilized on Saturday, according to the regional government.

Another was considered extinct and one was still active.

"If the weather conditions continue", the government plans to be able to consider all fires in the region as contained.

In the province of Cuenca, in the east of Castile-La Mancha (center), one of the two main fires active for several days was stabilized Friday shortly before 22:00 (20:00 GMT), said a government spokesperson regional.

The extent of the damage is not yet known precisely, but the fire was contained within a perimeter of 2.000 hectares.

The other major fire in the region, contained in a perimeter of 1.000 hectares, was still active Saturday morning but the firefighters hoped to stabilize it, said the spokesman.

In the southern Andalusia province of Almeria, the fire in Mojacar, in the Sierra de Cabrera, was about to be brought under control, said a spokeswoman for the regional government.

About 2.600 hectares were traversed by the flames, which resulted in the evacuation of some 3.000 people who returned from their homes.

In the province of Castellon, in the region of Valencia (east), a fire, which started on Thursday evening, was stabilized on Saturday morning, according to the regional government.

In Horta de Sant Joan in Catalonia (northeast), the fire that killed four firefighters on Tuesday and burned 1.200 hectares was on the way to extinction.

Six firefighters died fighting the flames during the week in Spain: four Tuesday in Catalonia, a Thursday in the province of Teruel, a Friday in Catalonia.

The latter had been very badly burned Tuesday while fighting against the flames with his comrades who died.

Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved

google news source

[recyclinage]

Spain: stability on the fire front but alert maintained
The main fires that have broken out in recent days in Spain are mostly contained, but the government maintains the maximum alert level.
"The maximum alert for the risk of fires is maintained in Spain," the Interior Ministry announced on Saturday evening in a statement, while more than 20.000 hectares went up in smoke during the week, and six firefighters lost their lives.
In Aragon (north), where the province of Teruel is the most affected with 11.700 hectares ravaged by flames since Wednesday, the regional government hopes to control during the day of Sunday three of the main fires.
Two others had been on Saturday, and the most virulent of the six outbreaks was stabilized. "The night was quiet," said the regional government.
Another fire, which seems to have been caused voluntarily, started on Saturday afternoon in the Hurdes region, in Extremadura (center). He was still not checked on Sunday morning and the extent of the damage was not known. About 400 firefighters assisted by air assets were fighting against the blaze.
In the region of Valencia (east), the fires that hit the province of Castellon in particular were stabilized. A total of 1.586 hectares were burned in this region, announced the regional authorities.
The fires that affected the province of Cuenca, east of Castile-La Mancha (center), were under control and burned between 2.000 and 3.000 hectares.
In Andalusia (south), the fire in Mojacar, in the province of Almeria, was brought under control on Saturday afternoon, after having covered around 2.600 hectares.
The Spanish meteorological agency has warned that several provinces in the south and east of Spain may experience high temperatures of around 40 ° Celsius.

west france news source

[recyclinage]

Fires: a fire goes back to Extremadura, 500 people evacuated

(AFP) - 4 hours ago

MADRID - Most of the fires that have devastated more than 20.000 hectares of vegetation in the past week in Spain were under control or on the way to Monday, with the exception of the fire declared in Extremadura, where 500 people were evacuated overnight .

The fire in the Hurdes region in Extremadura (center-west), which seemed to be under control on Sunday, "started again" overnight, around 03:20 (01:20 GMT), because of "strong gusts of wind", the government said. regional in a press release.

The fire, which burned more than 500 hectares of vegetation, forced about 500 people to evacuate overnight from several neighboring localities, the statement said.

In the province of Teruel (northeast), in Aragon, the most affected by the fires with more than 11.700 hectares gone up in smoke for a week, the six declared outbreaks were not yet extinct on Monday, but none more progressed, A spokesman for the regional government told AFP.

Three outbreaks are under control and three others on the verge of being controlled, said the spokesman.

"They could be checked overnight because we are waiting for a favorable weather situation," he added.

Twenty-four Spanish provinces were placed on alert Monday because of high temperatures expected during the day, especially in Andalusia (south), where the thermometer is expected to exceed 40 ° Celsius.

In the region of Valencia (east), the fires that hit the province of Castellon in particular have stabilized since Sunday. A total of 1.586 hectares were burned in this region.

The fires that affected the province of Cuenca, east of Castile-La Mancha (center), are also under control and burned between 2.000 and 3.000 hectares.

In Andalusia (south), the fire in Mojacar, in the province of Almeria, was brought under control on Saturday afternoon, after having covered around 2.600 hectares.

Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved

google news source

[recyclinage]

Spain: dead and missing in fire in Castile and Leon

One person died and another is missing Tuesday after a fire broke out in Castile and Leon (western Spain) while firefighters managed to control the homes that ravaged the country. a week 20.000 hectares of forest across the country.

A man, who has not been identified, perished in the flames which destroyed a house near Arenas de San Pedro (120 km west of Madrid), authorities in Castile and Leon said. The death adds to those of six firefighters who perished last week fighting the flames. According to the same source, a woman is also missing in the fire, which destroyed around 300 hectares on Tuesday. The Interior Ministry is keeping the country on "maximum" alert on forest fires. (MJN

msn news group

[recyclinage]

Fires: 4.000 people evacuated to Spain
Created the 01.08.09/17/11 at 01.08.09h17 | Updated on 14/0/XNUMX at XNUMX:XNUMX pm | XNUMX comments
Increase text size Reduce text size | Print Send by e-mail
Southern Europe ravaged by fires
Southern Europe ravaged by fires / AFP

FIRE - On the island of La Palma, in the Spanish Canary Islands ...
A violent forest fire started on Saturday on the island of La Palma, in the Spanish Canary Islands, where 4.000 people were evacuated, local authorities announced.

250 firefighters

The fire, out of control, spread on three fronts, fanned by gusts of winds of 70 km / h and a high temperature of 38 degrees Celsius. Some 250 firefighters and forest guards were fighting against the flames which were advancing in particular towards the town of El Paso where most of the extinction efforts were concentrated.

Spain has faced numerous forest fires since the start of summer. Nearly 75.000 hectares have gone up in smoke since January, including 45.000 hectares in the past two weeks, already almost double the area burned over the whole of 2008 (39.900 hectares), said Friday the vice-presidency from the government of Teresa Fernandez de la Vega.

After two dark years in 2005 (155.000 hectares burned) and 2006 (188.000), Spain had been relatively spared in the last two years, despite two major fires in the Canaries in 2007. A dozen people died this summer in the fires in Spain.

20 minutes news source

[recyclinage]

Forest fires continue to rage in the Canaries
AP | 02.08.2009/15/05 | XNUMX:XNUMX p.m.

For the second day in a row, forest fires, fueled by strong winds, continued to rage on Sunday on the island of La Palma, in the Spanish Canary Islands, authorities said.

According to Jose Miguel Ruano, security adviser to the regional government, the firefighters had to retreat from the scale of the fire near the town of Fuencaliente.

Seven planes were mobilized to help the 500 firefighters fighting the fire. Thirty houses and several vineyards were destroyed by fire, and 4.000 people evacuated on Saturday.

The head of the Spanish government, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, was due to go there on Sunday. AP

obs news source

[recyclinage]

On the Canary Island of Palma in particular, the fire that has been raging since Saturday was partially controlled this Monday morning, and the one that raged in Aragon was controlled by the firefighters. On the island of La Palma, the fire was still advancing to the east but to the west, it was able to be stopped thanks to a volcanic and sparsely wooded landscape.

A rescue operations manager explains that the weather conditions, in addition, are likely to help the work of the firefighters to contain the fire and then delimit a perimeter.

Temperatures dropped on Monday and light precipitation is expected. The Palma fire burned more than 2.000 hectares of pine forest and evacuated 4.000 people.

Spain is the country most affected in Europe by fires. A dozen people, including six firefighters, have perished there since the start of the summer and 75.000 hectares have burned down.

euronews news source see video report