In eastern Spain, the showers have certainly helped firefighters to contain the fire raging in the region of Valencia, but helped by the wind, the fire continues to progress after having already burned 19,000 hectares.
Hundreds of firefighters, with the reinforcement of helicopters and planes, have been hard at work for days to try to stem the flames which extend over more than 120 km and which have come dangerously close to the natural park of the Sierra Calderona.
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"
Most of the land and air means (...) are concentrated on the south-eastern flank to prevent the fire from reaching the Sierra Calderona
", explained at the beginning of the afternoon Gabriela Bravo, security manager for the local authorities. .
The fire in Bejis, which started on Monday, broke out two days after that of Vall d'Ebo, in the same region and between them led to the evacuation of 3,000 people.
The showers that fell in the middle of the week made it possible to overcome the Vall dEbo fire on Friday, but that of Bejis remained active.
“It is a very important fire”
Firefighters from the Military Emergency Unit described the night
as "intense
" posting images of gigantic flames on Twitter.
"
It's a very large fire in an area extending over more than 120 km, so we must use all means to contain the fire
," Mariano Hernandez, one of the region's firefighters, told public television. .
In addition, many questions are emerging around the circulation of a train carrying around fifty passengers in the area affected by the Bejis fire.
The driver of the train which had left Valencia for Zaragoza had not been alerted to the danger and had to turn around in the face of the flames.
But before the maneuver was carried out, passengers panicked, screaming in terror and calling for help, some breaking the train's windows to escape on foot, according to television footage.
An investigation was opened by the police, as well as within the railway company Renfe and the operator Adif.
“
We will provide all the information necessary to shed light on this incident and ensure that it does not happen again
,” said Minister of Science Diana Morant on public television, defending the “
good
” decisions taken by the driver of the train.
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The Vall d'Ebo fire broke out on Saturday and that of Bejis two days later, leading to the evacuation of around 3,000 people.
Since the beginning of the year, Spain has experienced 391 forest fires which have claimed 283,000 hectares, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), more than three times more than in 2021. According to scientists, global warming increases the likelihood of heat waves as well as droughts and, in turn, fires.