Tenerife has burned nearly 4,000 hectares

Fernando Clavijo, head of the regional government of the Canary Islands, said the fire that has destroyed nearly 4,000 hectares on the island of Tenerife, in the Spanish Canary archipelago, off the west coast of Africa, is starting to return to normal. during a press conference. The fire had been developing in an uncontrollable and unpredictable manner for forty-eight hours due to complex weather conditions.

This forest fire, which started on Tuesday evening, has burned about 3,800 hectares, according to the latest report from the authorities, mobilizing more than 250 firefighters and 16 aircraft, but also more than 200 members of the special military unit of the Ministry of Defense. Which intervene in the most alarming fires in Spain.

“Last night, the fire and weather were behaving normally. Over the previous two nights, we had noticed unusual winds, temperatures, and behavior of the fire.”Clavijo explained. However, it has not settled yet, and the authorities will study in the afternoon the possibility of lifting the siege of La Esperanza near the northern wing of the fire, where the efforts of the firefighters are concentrated.

Humidity will drop again.

About 3,000 people have been evacuated and nearly 4,000 have been locked up since the fire broke out, while Teide National Park, popular with tourists, has been closed since Thursday evening.

The cloud of smoke visible in satellite imagery has passed the summit of Teide, a volcano that overlooks the island and peaks at 3,715 meters above sea level, while the main foci of fire lie on wooded hills twenty kilometers below, near several villages.

The island has seen larger fires in terms of area burned, especially in 2007, but the weather conditions and terrain of this area made Fernando Clavijo say Thursday that the archipelago is facing its own fires. “most complex” for forty years.

I created fire “their weather conditions”According to the authorities. “We restored some moisture in the air on Thursday night, but we know it will be low again as of today.”Particularly because of the high temperatures, meteorologist Vicky Palma said during the press conference.

While the intensity of the fire subsided through the night, Forest Service chief Pedro Martinez warned that during the hottest hours, fires could burn To reactivate.