Spanish authorities announced today, Saturday, the outbreak of a wildfire on the Spanish island of La Palma, forcing at least 500 people to evacuate their homes, marking the first natural disaster on the island since the eruption of a volcano in 2021.
Canary Islands local government president Fernando Clavijo stated that "at least 11 homes have been destroyed as the fire spreads." He added, "The number of people needing evacuation may exceed a thousand. This depends on whether we can control these strong winds," noting that "about 140 hectares (346 acres) have been damaged by the fire."
The fire ignited in the early hours of the morning in the "El Pinar de Puntagorda" area, which is densely wooded in the northern part of the island, as many European cities anticipate extremely high temperatures this week.
Clavijo indicated that the Spanish army has deployed 150 firefighters from its force to assist local crews in extinguishing the fire, while others are arriving from the neighboring island of Tenerife. Four helicopters and four ground firefighting units are struggling to control the blaze on the island, which is part of a group of Spanish islands off the west coast of Africa.
