Fire enters limits of national park
BARCELONA: A forest fire in southern Spain has forced the evacuation of 1000 people and is threatening a national park famous for its biodiversity, authorities say.
The flames have advanced eastward and have entered Donana National Park, one of Spain’s most important nature reserves and a Unesco World Heritage site since 1994.
The park, which has more than 50,000ha of wetlands and woods, is an important stop for migratory birds from Africa and Europe and is home to the highly endangered Iberian lynx and the Iberian imperial eagle.
‘‘The fire has entered in the limits of the reserve, and that is where we are focusing our efforts,’’ Jose Gregorio Fiscal Lopez, from the regional Andalusian authority in charge of the environment, told Spanish national television.
Susana Diaz, the regional president of Andalusia, said ‘‘there’s no risk to the population’’ after 1000 people were evacuated from campsites and houses near the town of Moguer on Spain’s southern coast, where the fire started on Saturday night (local time).
By noon Sunday, at least 750 people were allowed to return.
Diaz said fighting the fire was difficult due to shifting winds and the hot, dry weather. Temperatures reached 39degC.
More than 150 firefighters and 21 air units were combating the blaze on Sunday after televised images showed trees engulfed by flames overnight.
‘‘It’s still very early, but we are not ruling out the human factor [as a possible cause of the fire],’’ Diaz said.
The fire comes a week after wildfires killed 64 people in neighbouring Portugal, which, like Spain, is suffering from lack of rain and high temperatures. — AP