Surabhi Gorebal, Pune
According to officials, a wildfire that started on the Spanish island of Tenerife on Wednesday has rapidly expanded since then. Hundreds of firefighters are working to put out a major fire on the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands.
The fire grew to a magnitude of 1,800 hectares in just 24 hours. The fire has already consumed both sides of Spain’s tallest mountain, Mount Teide, and 22 miles of dry woodland. This region is currently off-limits.
Fernando Clavijo, the regional leader, said during an evening press briefing in the island’s capital, Santa Cruz, that the wildfire went “out of control,” and the situation is dangerous. “Our goal is for it to stop gaining ground,”. He continued by saying that the immediate goal was to take defensive action for Wednesday night.
“I am confident that the more than 200 ground forces that will be active tonight will be able to contain the two most worrying fronts,” On the social networking website X, formerly known as Twitter, he said.
14 aircraft are being employed in the battle against the blaze, in addition to 250 firefighters and military personnel. In addition to the water-dropping seaplane that came from mainland Spain on Wednesday afternoon, two additional seaplanes are slated to arrive on Thursday morning.
According to Vicky Palma, a wildfire expert for the Tenerife Council, the projected dip in overnight temperatures to about 20 degrees Celsius could worsen wind patterns in the area. Emergency services chief on the island, Pedro Martinez, said, “We don’t rule out that tomorrow we’ll again see intense fire activity.”
Rosa Davila, the council’s representative in Tenerife, claims that all mountain access points on the island, including the well-known tourist site Mount Teide, have been shut down.
150 people have reportedly already been evacuated from a number of northeastern villages on the island, which are mostly made up of farms and holiday houses, according to Canarias Radio.
A dog shelter took measures by removing its most vulnerable puppies and those with respiratory issues to protect them from the smoke. The two airports in Tenerife are operational, according to Aena, the airport management firm in Spain.
The Canary Islands have recently experienced a heat wave that has severely dried up several areas of the group of islands and increased the risk of wildfires.
Throughout this summer, firefighters have successfully extinguished a number of forest fires on the islands of Gran Canaria and La Palma. Over the course of the summer, Europe has struggled with waves of extreme weather, which has been made worse by the effects of climate change.