Environment
Forest fire on La Palma: more than 4000 people evacuated
Three men watch the forest fire on the Canary Island. photo
© Europa Press/EUROPA PRESS/dpa
The Canary Island does not come to rest: in 2021, the Tajogaite volcano spewed lava for months. Now the forest is burning in the north of the island…
A forest fire has started on the Canary Island, which belongs to Spain La Palma destroyed an area within one day, which corresponds to around 6500 football pitches. The fire that has been raging since Saturday morning near the town of Puntagorda in the northwest of the island has already covered almost 4700 hectares, the state TV broadcaster RTVE reported on Sunday, citing the authorities. 4,255 people were brought to safety from their homes in Puntagorda and the neighboring town of Tijarafe.
According to official information, the fire is being fought by around 300 emergency services, who are supported, among other things, by a total of eleven firefighting aircraft and helicopters. At least eleven houses were completely burned down, it said.
But there is also good news on Sunday: The weather conditions have meanwhile become much better, emphasized a spokesman for the island government. There is a significantly higher humidity and also lower temperatures. This will help the fire brigade fight the flames. The north of the island of La Palma, which was affected by the fire, is also popular with emigrants from Germany.
The westernmost of the Canary Islands made headlines for months in 2021 after the Tajogaite volcano spat out massive amounts of lava that flowed towards the sea in red-hot streams. At least 7,000 people had to flee from the lava back then – country houses, banana plantations and vineyards were buried under meter-thick lava.