Fires broke out in eastern Spain on Thursday. The fire is spreading so fast that firefighters had to ask the military for help. It is not yet known how much damage the flames did.
The Spanish fire brigade is fighting fires from the air in eastern Spain. Plumes of smoke rose over the vast expanses of land on Thursday.
Among other things, the area of Villanueva de Viver, located between Valencia and Aragon, is on fire. According to local media, about a thousand residents from three local villages had to leave their homes.
Military support
As firefighters are unable to cope with the spreading flames on their own, soldiers from the Military Rescue Unit (UME) were called in.
According to the Spanish meteorological agency AEMET, a second level warning of a very high fire risk is in effect throughout the region. The alert will also be maintained on Friday.
For now, the services are not able to say how many hectares of land have been consumed by the fire.
Fires in SpainReuters
Fires in SpainReuters
Dry and warm
The winter of 2022-23 in the northern hemisphere was the second-warmest on record, and also unusually dry, scientists reported in early March. In Spain, last year is considered the worst in terms of fires. According to experts from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), the fire broke out there 493 times. 307,000 hectares of land were destroyed.
Main photo source: Reuters