La Palma: Thousands evacuated as wildfires raged in the Canary Islands

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By Christie Cooney, BBC News

1 hour ago

photo caption,

Smoke was pictured rising over the hills on the Spanish island on Saturday

Thousands of residents of La Palma in the Canary Islands have been urged to leave their homes as emergency workers try to bring forest fires under control.

The fire started early Saturday morning and has already consumed 4,500 hectares (11,100 acres) of land and at least a dozen homes.

About 400 soldiers from various agencies are deployed on the ground to deal with the fire.

Officials said some 4,255 people had been evacuated, but others had refused to leave.

Fernando Clavijo, president of the Canary Islands’ regional government, said there was “resistance to abandonment of homes” but the priority must be saving lives.

“People come first, then the houses, then after that [extinguishing the fire],” He said.

The fire broke out in the Alpinar district of the northwestern municipality of Puntagorda, before spreading south towards the town of Tjaravi.

Mr. Clavijo attributed its rapid spread to “the winds, climatic conditions, and the heat wave we are experiencing.”

He said late Saturday that the advance had slowed but remained out of control.

A seaplane was used to tackle the fire before dark. Local media reported that a second would join the operation on Sunday.

The Spanish army has deployed 150 of its firefighters and another unit is expected to follow. The Red Cross has also set up a facility to assist evacuees.

Writing on Twitter, Spanish President Pedro Sanchez said he had spoken to Mr Clavijo to express his “solidarity with the people affected” by the fire and put “all necessary means” at the disposal of the La Palma authorities.

Speaking to the BBC World Service, resident Leon Barretto expressed his reluctance to evacuate.

“The Civil Guard comes here and wants to force you to leave your house,” he said.

“They want to force you to lose everything you’ve worked for your whole life, and let it burn because it’s protocol. But then they don’t have protocol to act the way they should.”

The fire comes amid a heatwave that has sent temperatures soaring across much of southern Europe and is expected to continue into next week.

Periods of extreme heat occur within normal weather patterns, but globally they are becoming more frequent, intense and lasting longer due to global warming.

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