A wildfire that has caused hundreds of people to abandon their homes on the Spanish island of Tenerife was expanding and remained out of control late on Saturday, with hot, dry, and windy conditions impeding efforts to stop the flames.
Late Saturday, emergency services reported that the fire had spread to ten towns, though 11 had been evacuated as a precaution. There have been no significant tourist areas damaged.
Evacuations were scheduled throughout Saturday owing to deteriorating weather conditions overnight.
Rosa Davila, the director of Tenerife’s municipal administration, described the fire as devastating and claimed it had prompted further evacuations at a news conference late Saturday.
By Sunday morning, regional authorities had reported that 12,279 individuals had been evacuated, a reduction from their previous tentative estimate of 26,000.
Because of the bad weather conditions, the Canary Islands regional leader, Fernando Claviji, predicted that Sunday would be very complicated for firefighters.
The fire broke out on Wednesday in a hilly national park surrounding Spain’s highest peak, Mount Teide.
It has now grown to over 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres) with a perimeter of 70 km (40 miles), up from 5,000 hectares and a perimeter of 50 km earlier on Saturday.
Tenerife, part of the Canaries archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, has so far been unaffected and its two airports are operating normally.
This summer’s scorching heat and dry weather this summer have contributed to extremely devastating wildfires in Europe, especially on Spain’s La Palma island in July, and Canada.
Earlier this month, fires on Hawaii’s Maui island killed more than 110 people and destroyed the ancient resort city of Lahaina.
Climate change, according to scientists, has resulted in more frequent and more powerful extreme weather occurrences.
Also read: As Wildfires In Western Canada Worsen, Over 30,000 Ordered To Evacuate
