On Sunday, the Spanish authorities announced that more than 4,000 residents were evacuated due to a rampant wildfire in the forests of La Palma Island. The blaze coincides with an intense heatwave currently engulfing Europe.
The wildfire erupted in the early hours of Saturday in the El Pinar de Puntagorda region, a heavily forested area in the island’s north, which is part of the Canary Islands. The conflagration necessitated the evacuation of inhabitants from the Puntagorda and Tijarafe villages.
In a bid to control the escalating fire on the island, part of the Spanish archipelago located off Africa’s western coast, ten air units and 300 firefighters on the ground have been mobilized.
Fernando Clavijo, the President of the Canary Islands’ local government, revealed that the wildfire has razed at least 13 homes to the ground. Furthermore, authorities reported that the fire has decimated roughly 115,000 acres of land.
The Spanish Royal Family disclosed that King Felipe VI made a phone call to Clavijo on Saturday, expressing his solidarity with the residents of La Palma.
This wildfire represents the first major natural disaster that the island has encountered since the eruption of a volcano in September 2021. That volcanic eruption obliterated over 2,000 structures and compelled thousands to flee their homes when lava began spewing from the Cumbre Vieja volcano.
