The fight against the fire declared this Thursday in Tenerife it is centered on two fronts and covers about 60 hectares of scrublandin a “complicated and fuel-intensive” area, affirmed the president of the island’s Cabildo, Peter Martinthat It has also requested a seaplane from the Peninsula.
Pedro Martín has pointed out, in statements to journalists in Los Realejos facilitated by the Cabildo of Tenerife, that the fire no longer occupies only this municipality, where it began at 10:19 am this Thursday, since “has gotten into” also in San Juan de la Rambla.
Five helicopters have been working on the scene for several hours, a plane from La Gomera that deposits retardant liquid and a helicopter from La Palma that has been requested to reinforce the troops has also left for Tenerife.
In addition, the teams of the forestry brigades have been distributed, so that those of the morning shift have continued their work and those of the afternoon-night shift have been incorporated beforehand, Pedro Martín stated.
“Attempts are being made to stop a fire that at the moment may have about 60 hectares and we will see how it evolves. Our intention is to try to get ahead of ourselves so that this does not get out of hand,” he added.
Likewise, the Cabildo de Tenerife has asked the Government of the Canary Islands – which has already assumed the direction of the fire and has declared it level 2 – to request a seaplane from the Peninsula to reinforce the front of San Juan de la Rambla, an area ” very complicated”, and that the fire does not spread further.
Action is being taken on two fronts with the intention of limiting the fire, for which it is essential to take advantage of the remaining hours of the day and for the night to be “calmer”, and hence the request made by the Cabildo de Tenerife that incorporate more media from other islands and the Peninsula.
Pedro Martín explained that the affected area is the Campeches-Tigaiga-Ruiz area, which has an orography in the form of depressions, ravines, with a certain flow of air and this helps to fan the flames.
It is a complicated area, he has reiterated, because there is not a large grove but above all low mount and very compact, which makes it easy to ignite the flames “and have plenty of fuel.”
The president of the insular corporation has stressed that no urban center or settlement is in any danger, but there are scattered houses, for which he has recommended that the area not be accessed not because there is a risk to the houses, but to avoid clogging up some roads. that they have narrow accesses and that they must use the means against the fire.
He has insisted that for now there are no dangers for housing or crop areas and has emphasized that the concern is more focused on the fire going to high areas of the pine forest, although the wind, for the moment, is blowing in the opposite direction. and this can help slow down the progress.
The next few hours will be crucial to have good news, said Pedro Martín, for whom the problem is “the large amount of fuel that is there and that is not accumulated pine needles, it is that this mountain is like that, very dense, with brambles, variegated, an area that is difficult to access and that makes it easy to catch”.
Martín has reiterated that there is no danger to people but has also insisted that on other occasions, from a fire that broke out in this area it has spread “and we don’t want it to be like that”, for which he has shown his gratitude to the devices arrived from La Gomera and La Palma and has trusted that the current operation is sufficient “to have good news today”.
