Rain Helps Reduce Intensity of Massive Wildfire That Killed a Firefighter in Spain

Light rain in Spain gave firefighters combating the "monster" wildfire on Monday some breathing space. This fire has killed one firefighter, forcing approximately 2,600 residents from their homes.

The Monster Wildfire

The regional government said about 51 water-dropping planes and 500 firefighters have been making effort to stop the fire, with officials convinced it was intentionally started the previous Wednesday in the southern Malaga province.

About 260 soldiers from the military's emergency brigade joined the firefighters on Sunday so they can control the flames in the Sierra Bermeja mountains.

It was showed in a TV footage when older residents who had been relocated to a town called Ronda began to clap as the rain started. But firefighters revealed that the rain would not be able to control the flames.

Regional fire chief Juan Sanchez said: "The rain will not put out the fire. But in places where we have it under control, it will help shorten the time to extinguish it completely."

Impact of the Fire

Local emergency services described the fire as "complex and exceptional" and so far has damaged some 20,000 acres ( 8,000 hectares). Extremely hot temperatures, unpredictable winds, and low humidity levels had made the flame become a "hungry monster", the deputy fire chief of the region, Alejandro Garcia said last week.

On Sunday, Authorities evacuated about 1,600 people from six villages as a safety measure. Approximately 1,000 people, who were relocated from the coastal resort of Estepona when the fire initially started, were permitted to return back home on Monday.

But about 1,700 people from six towns and villages relocated on Sunday - Genalguacil, Jubrique, Faraján, Alpandeire, Pujerra, and Júzcar - were being sheltered somewhere else.

Carmen Crespo, regional environment minister told news radio Ser that "controlling it today seems like too much to ask but there is a ray of hope."

The regional government said on Sunday, two firefighters were wounded as a result of falls, while a firefighter who is 44-year-old lost his life on Thursday. And on Sunday his burial was held.

Climate Crisis

Conditions became better overnight, adding that energy was being placed on the eastern flank of the flame. Stressing that the scale and complexity of the flame haven't been seen for years, and had been worsened by the neglect of rural regions and the climate crisis, the Andalucían regional government's forest fire service, Infoca, said.

The director of Infoca's regional operations centre, Juan Sánchez, said: "Right now, we're probably dealing with the most complicated fire that Spanish firefighting services have faced in recent years."

The latest region close to the Mediterranean basin to be affected by wildfires this summer is Southern Spain. Climate scientists warn that this seasonal phenomenon will become very common due to man-made global warming.

Massive fires have already destroyed parts of Italy, Turkey, Greece, and Algeria.

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