The forest fire in the region of Las Hurdes (Cáceres), which is already in its fourth day, has been reactivated this Thursday afternoon in an area that those responsible for its extinction describe as "critical", that of Las Mestas, and progresses in the direction of Las Batuecas (Salamanca), where the monastery of San José has been evicted, as reported by the person in charge of the device, Francisco García Navarrete, who has detailed that the fire has reached an area of 55 kilometers in perimeter and has lamented that a “significant spread” may necessitate further population evictions.
The fire, which also affects Castilla y León, coincides with the peak of the heat wave that the country is suffering and during which temperatures of up to 42º or 43º will be reached in Cáceres and 42º in Salamanca.
Added to these records, it is expected that strong gusts of gusty wind forecast for the next few hours will also complicate the extinction work.
The total area burned exceeds 6,000 hectares, 3,000 in Extremadura and 3,300 in Castilla y León, according to data from regional governments.
This Thursday afternoon another fire was declared as risk level 2, in Casas de Miravete (Cáceres, 129 inhabitants), due to the proximity of the fire to the Monfragüe National Park, isolated buildings and due to the smoke that has affected the visibility N-5 and has forced to cut it between kilometers 207 and 212. According to a spokesman for the Junta de Extremadura, 116 and 26 vehicles participate in the extinction work and at 10 at night there had been no evictions.
22:00📸#IFCasasDeMiravete #Cáceres
The @BRIF_PINO RD brigade is already working on the Casas de Miravete forest fire, preventing the fire from progressing towards the Monfragüe National Park.
Much encouragement and hard with it companions!
We are #BRIF from @mitecogob pic.twitter.com/yuNofEWOOR
— ATBRIF (@AT_Brif) July 14, 2022
The General Director of Emergencies of the Board, Nieves Villar, has indicated this Thursday afternoon that the fire is advancing "with great force" and that more means have been mobilized that are already on their way to the fire zone.
High temperatures and changing wind conditions are making firefighting efforts difficult.
The Extremaduran Executive has requested help from the Military Emergency Unit, which at 10 p.m. was already heading towards the affected area.
The Minister of Agriculture of Extremadura, Begoña García Bernal, has explained about the Las Hurdes fire that Wednesday night has been "complicated" due to some reproductions located in four areas of the perimeter: the road that connects the town of Casares de Hurdes with Serradilla del Llano (Salamanca), the areas of Las Mestas-Cabezo, Riomalo de Arriba and the most serious in the range of the Sierra de Nuñomoral.
In this case, the fire broke out of the firewall that the land media had made and now it is trying to perimeter it with heavy machinery, as reported by the Infoex coordinator.
Despite this, the extinction services have managed to control the reactivations and prevent them from continuing their advance.
The Las Hurdes fire is classified as risk level 2 on a scale of 0 to 3 (four levels).
Level 2 fires are those in which the intervention of state media is necessary or may lead to national emergency situations.
8:30 p.m. / 🔥 #IFCasasDeMiravete
The firefighting team, made up of more than 100 people, is focused on containing the head of the fire.
It remains active and at level 2 of danger.
— C. Agriculture, Des.
Rural, Population and Territory (@Junta_Agricultu) July 14, 2022
11 people with a high degree of dependency have been evicted from a residence in Casares de las Hurdes, and the 112 service of Extremadura maintains this Thursday the preventive evacuations of the six centers of Ladrillar, Aceitunilla, Cabezo, Batuequilla, La Horcajada and Riomalo de Arriba .
The counselor has stressed that the evicted neighbors, like the previous day, will be able to go up to their houses to collect medicines, clothes or to attend to their animals, but always accompanied by the Civil Guard and with the authorization of those responsible for extinction.
The fire that devastates the border area of the provinces of Cáceres and Salamanca worsens.
The evolution of the fire is "very unfavourable", as reported by the Junta de Extremadura and it becomes "extremely virulent", with "very extreme" propagation speeds, adds the Junta de Castilla y León.
In the image, agents from the Castilla y León Environment arrive at the border of Extremadura to continue with the joint efforts to extinguish the fire. ROBERTO PALOMO
Residents of the towns bordering Casares de las Hurdes have come worried to observe the progress of the fire.
Shortly after, the Civil Guard has cordoned off the area, as the fire continued unstoppable. ROBERTO PALOMO
A column of smoke has opened this morning due to the uncontrolled advance of the flames in the direction of the province of Salamanca, in Castilla y León.
The Extremaduran and Castilian-Leonese authorities, who work in coordination, have been deployed in the border area between both communities to try to control the fire. ROBERTO PALOMO
Iván Domínguez belongs to the group of Environmental Agents of Castilla y León and his job is to clear paths with the excavator to open firebreaks. ROBERTO PALOMO
In the caceñera town of Nuñomoral every Wednesday a market is held, which this week has less than half the stalls than other times due to fear of the fire.
Just a clothes stall and a traveling deli sell the clientele.
Many vendors have preferred to stay at home as a precaution, since the progress of the fire is changing due to the wind. ROBERTO PALOMO
A plane releases the load of water on the flames that have been fanned since early in the morning.
The fire has forced the eviction of more than 250 people from their homes. ROBERTO PALOMO
Two members of the firefighting operation collect information before the evaluation meeting with the rest of those responsible for the extinction work, at the central command post located on the Vegas de Coria football field (Cáceres). ROBERTO PALOMO
Arantxa González and Jonatan Martínez, 30, have come from Murcia to spend a few days on vacation and visit their family in Nuñomoral.
When they found out about the fire, they doubted whether to come or not, because Nuñomoral is one of the towns that is prepared for a possible evacuation.
ROBERT PALOMO
A Civil Guard blocks the way to Aceitunilla (Cáceres), one of the evicted towns.
Although the flames are about eight kilometers from the houses, it is the abundant presence of smoke that prevents the neighbors from returning. ROBERTO PALOMO
Forest firefighters from the Junta de Extremadura are preparing for the extinction work in the border area between the provinces of Salamanca and Cáceres. ROBERTO PALOMO
Vanesa Iglesias, 41, left Madrid a few years ago to invest in rural houses.
While the project is moving forward, she runs a store selling basic necessities in Nuñomoral.
The fire threatens her future plans, since the rural activities that attract tourism can be severely damaged. ROBERTO PALOMO
Francisco Javier Crespo, councilor for works in Nuñomoral, informs the residents of the situation of the fire and the possible eviction if the fire approaches the town.
Olive, 3 kilometers away, has already been evicted. ROBERTO PALOMO
Teodomira Martín (85), from Carabusino, observes the column of smoke from the sidewalk of her house early in the morning.
At noon, the security device had extended to this farmhouse, and it could be evicted if the fire continues to spread. ROBERTO PALOMO
15 land resources, 5 aerial resources, 3 agents of the natural environment and 6 technicians are working on the fire, and more aerial resources will be incorporated, especially from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge.
The operation has about 160 people.
Different endowments from the Emergency Military Unit, the BRIF (Forest Fire Reinforcement Brigades), the SEPEI (Special Fire Prevention and Extinction Services of Albacete) and the Red Cross also continue to support the device, according to the Board of Estremadura.
Candelario and Monsagro, active, but without flames
In the part of Castilla y León, the fires of Candelario and Monsagro remain active.
According to the assessments of the technicians, the second has a higher level of danger.
The spokesman for the Government of the Junta de Castilla y León, Carlos Fernández Carriedo, has provided provisional data on the affected surfaces.
In the Monsagro area, the flames affect 2,500 hectares, according to initial calculations, and in Candelario, 800 hectares.
Fernández explained that at the time he gave the press conference, after the Governing Council at noon this Thursday, the fires were "without flames".
This does not mean, as he has added, that we do not have to be "attentive."
Fernández Carriedo has stressed that we must try to "strengthen" the situation,
In the municipality of Candelario, where there was an outbreak on Wednesday night, a children's camp has been evicted due to the strong smoke that was over the area.
More than fifty people, 11 monitors and 49 minors, have been displaced to a shelter in Béjar.
The fire in this municipality began on Monday, just like the one in Monsagro, in the Sierra de Francia, and on the border with the Las Hurdes region, due to a dry storm and lightning strikes.
In Monsagro, the combined operations have managed to stop the head of the fire, although there is a high risk of reactivation, as reported by the Government of Castilla y León.
In Candelario, the other active point, the winds have complicated the extinction tasks.