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| Spain fights huge forest fire as European heatwave intensifies | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| More than 500 firefighters and soldiers are working to bring a huge forest fire under control in north-eastern Spain as the early summer heatwave intensifies across Europe. | |
| The fire, in the Catalan province of Tarragona, has been fanned by strong winds and high temperatures and has so far burned across 5,000 hectares (12,355 acres) of land. | The fire, in the Catalan province of Tarragona, has been fanned by strong winds and high temperatures and has so far burned across 5,000 hectares (12,355 acres) of land. |
| Fifty-three residents have been evacuated from their homes, five roads remain cut off and the civil protection authorities have advised people not to enter the area unless absolutely necessary. | |
| There are reports that hundreds of sheep have died in the smoke and flames. | |
| “We’re facing a serious fire on a scale not seen for 20 years,” the region’s interior minister, Miquel Buch, said in a tweet. “It could burn through 20,000 hectares. Let’s be very aware that any carelessness could lead to a catastrophe.” | “We’re facing a serious fire on a scale not seen for 20 years,” the region’s interior minister, Miquel Buch, said in a tweet. “It could burn through 20,000 hectares. Let’s be very aware that any carelessness could lead to a catastrophe.” |
| The 350 local firefighters battling the blaze have been joined by 221 specialists from Spain’s military emergency unit, as well as planes, helicopters, tractors and other heavy machinery. | The 350 local firefighters battling the blaze have been joined by 221 specialists from Spain’s military emergency unit, as well as planes, helicopters, tractors and other heavy machinery. |
| In a statement early on Thursday morning, the Catalan government said the fire was expected to spread as temperatures climbed throughout the day and was on course to burn through 20,000 hectares. | In a statement early on Thursday morning, the Catalan government said the fire was expected to spread as temperatures climbed throughout the day and was on course to burn through 20,000 hectares. |
| “From the initial moments, the fire spread rapidly in a north-easterly direction, driven by the wind,” it said. “Last night the fire had affected some 3,600 hectares across several municipalities.” | |
| The head of the regional fire service said it was “hard to be optimistic” at the moment. “The terrain is complicated, which causes a lot of problems, and the weather conditions aren’t favourable,” David Borrell told Catalunya Ràdio. “That’s tiring us out and meaning we have to work hard to achieve our objectives.” | |
| The fire is thought to have started in poorly stored chicken manure on a farm in the Torre de l’Espanyol municipality of Tarragona. | |
| “Our main theory is that a heap of dung self-combusted, producing a flame that spread, reaching fuel and starting the fire,” Marc Costa, the head of the regional wildlife rangers, told the Catalan radio station RAC-1. | “Our main theory is that a heap of dung self-combusted, producing a flame that spread, reaching fuel and starting the fire,” Marc Costa, the head of the regional wildlife rangers, told the Catalan radio station RAC-1. |
| On Wednesday night Spain’s acting prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, thanked the emergency workers for their efforts, adding: “Concerned by the reports reaching us from Tarragona and for the families that have been evacuated.” | |
| Temperatures in some of Spanish regions are expected to rise above 43C (109F) on Thursday and Friday. | Temperatures in some of Spanish regions are expected to rise above 43C (109F) on Thursday and Friday. |
| Forecasters have said temperatures could reach 45C in parts of the continent by Saturday as a plume of hot air moves north from the Sahara, sucked northwards by a stalled storm over the Atlantic and high pressure in central Europe. | |
| Parts of Britain are expected to experience hot temperatures on Saturday, with a high of 32C expected in London. | Parts of Britain are expected to experience hot temperatures on Saturday, with a high of 32C expected in London. |
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