Spain fights against forest fire - Italy against floods

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Flames near the village of Almonaster la Real in the Spanish province of Huelva

In the province of Huelva in southwest Spain, around 3,200 people have been brought to safety since Thursday due to a forest fire. The media reported, citing the regional authorities. The fires have already destroyed around 10,000 hectares of forest - an area equivalent to a good 14,000 football fields.

The 1900-inhabitant community of Almonaster La Real was particularly affected, the reports said. In the hilly area about 40 kilometers east of the border with Portugal and a hundred kilometers northwest of Seville there are chestnut forests and pastures with stone, cork and mountain oaks. Pictures showed how forest burns there and fire fighters extinguish it.

More than 500 firefighters and soldiers are reportedly deployed. 24 fire-fighting planes and helicopters are also involved. Moist air and weaker winds meanwhile favored the fight against the flames, it was said. The fire is not yet under control, but progress is being made, said fire service spokesman for the Europa Press news agency.

Italy is  fighting against floods and forest fires at the same time

Fires blazed in Italy too. On the Mediterranean island of Sicily in Altofonte near Palermo, firefighters were still on duty on Monday to extinguish the remains of forest fires, as the news agency Ansa wrote.

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View of the fire in Altofonte on Sunday

The fires, which probably broke out in several places on Saturday and charred around 200 hectares of forest, had put the place in danger. Hundreds of people had to vacate their homes, but according to the Adnkronos agency, they have now been allowed to return.

On Monday the flames were under control. The public prosecutor's office was investigating arson.

Floods in South Tyrol and Veneto

Security forces were also deployed in South Tyrol and Veneto. However, they did not fight against fire, but against the consequences of the enormous rain masses of the weekend, as reported by Italian news agencies.

During the night the A22 Brenner motorway between Bozen Süd and San Michele was closed because the Adige river had exceeded the high-water alert level. Early on Monday morning the storm eased and the route could be opened to traffic again.

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The Etsch exceeded the high water alert level

The civil protection in Verona in Veneto took precautions to counter the incoming tidal wave of the Adige. Hundreds of trees that the storm had overturned would be washed ashore in the river, it said.

In the city of Klausen in South Tyrol, the fire brigade was on emergency duty overnight. Hundreds of people have been told to leave their homes or go to safety on the upper floors. The Eisack flooded there. According to media reports, the authorities also expected a clear relaxation in Klausen.

During the storm in many parts of Italy, a tree fell on a tent in Marina di Massa in Tuscany on Sunday, and two sisters, aged three and 14, died.

kko / dpa