SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Aug. 17 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The mayoress of Candelaria (Tenerife), María Concepción Brito, has asked the population for caution on Thursday to go out, since the town is “covered with ashes, remains of burned pine, Canary pine that are all over the that area, which is what is really burning”, due to the forest fire declared on the night of August 15 in Montes de Arafo but which is already affecting several municipalities on the island.
For this reason, Brito has urged citizens to go out “as little as possible”, since he has pointed out that the municipality’s health services have had to attend to people, especially the elderly, with “some respiratory problem, also with any eye irritation.
In any case, he qualified that “there have not been too many interventions” but those who have needed it have been attended to and pointed out, in statements to RNE collected by Europa Press, that “the entire device is prepared” for it.
“THEY ARE LITERALLY RISKING THEIR LIFE”
The mayoress of Candelaria wanted to value the work being carried out by the entire team that is fighting this fire because “they are literally risking their lives because the intensity and virulence” of this fire, she assures, “doesn’t” remind her in your municipality.
Currently, with regard to Candelaria, he pointed out that the night has passed “more or less calm”, since he affirmed that in the case of this municipality the “difficulty” occurred at the time the fire was generated –at night on August 15– because it was practically “unable to work” and hours were dedicated to the “design” of the entire strategy to act at dawn, which was when it was possible to act with land and air means.
Brito has stressed that the “intensity of the flames has been extraordinary”, stating that it was “almost impossible to access” even with aerial means in some areas because it was “impracticable”. In any case, he has pointed out that the night, with the “drop in temperatures, was something very favorable”, to which he added that the wind also “maintained a slight breeze”.
He also qualified that in the case of Candelaria the fire “has not gone down to the populated area”, for which he pointed out that “it is good news” given all that is happening and for which he had words of gratitude for all those who in some way or another they are collaborating in this situation.
Currently, the preventive evictions that affect Candelaria are focused on three main nuclei, such as Las Medianías, in the town of Igueste, in Araya and in the area of Las Cuevecitas. He explained that these evictions were made due to the risk that the fire would continue advancing towards that area.
