Spain: the great fire in the Valencia region is contained

The evolution of the huge Beijis fire in the Valencia region (eastern Spain) is favorable and its progress has been contained, the emergency services and authorities announced on Saturday.

“

, ”the emergency services of the Valencia region tweeted at the start of the day.

It was necessary to work “

”.

The president of the Valencia region, Ximo Puig, also announced that "

".

The National Directorate of Security indicated for its part that the fire extended over 135 km and that the preventive evacuation of 2,200 neighboring inhabitants was maintained as well as the confinement of some 1,500 people in two villages, Alcublas and Andilla.

Saving showers

Hundreds of firefighters with the reinforcement of helicopters and planes fight against this fire which started Monday in the province of Castellon, approaching dangerously the natural park of Sierra Calderona.

The Beijis fire broke out two days after the Vall d'Ebo fire, in the same region, and together they led to the evacuation of 3,000 people.

The showers that fell in the middle of the week allowed Friday to overcome the fire of Vall d'Ebo but that of Bejis remained active.

Read alsoXavier Bartet: “The repetition of fires causes the forest to lose its ability to renew itself naturally”

At the same time, an investigation was opened by the police, as well as within the railway company Renfe and the operator Adif, into an incident which caused a dozen injuries, including three seriously, during traffic of a train carrying around fifty passengers on Tuesday evening in the area affected by the Bejis fire.

The driver of the train, which 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 images broadcast on television.

283,000 hectares burned in Spain

According to data from the satellites of the European Copernicus program released on Saturday, the Beijis fire devoured 17,500 hectares and that of Vall d'Ebo some 9,300 hectares.

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.

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