The advance of the flames forces the confinement of two villages within the Leonese mountains | Spain | EUROtoday

A fireplace has brought about the confinement of the cities of Tremor de Abajo and Almagarinos within the area of El Bierzo (León). The flames started on Monday morning and have unfold quickly and strongly within the environment of those cities, situated in mountainous areas with tough entry. The growth of the fireplace has led to the order that at round seven within the night the inhabitants of those cities have been to not go away the place as a result of threat of the outbreaks and the smoke which are being managed regardless of the depth of the fireplace, the complicated orography and the sturdy wind. The fireplace, known as the Brañuelas forest fireplace as a result of its proximity to this city of 248 inhabitants, has reached degree 2, on an ascending scale from 0 to three, and its causes and perimeter are nonetheless unknown.

The Department of the Environment has reported that the order to not go away the municipalities of Leon is as a result of fast velocity of growth of the flames, as in the event that they have been uncontrolled they may trigger hazard if the roads have been instantly crossed by the entrance. The affected cities belong to the municipalities of Torre del Bierzo and Igüeña, situated in mountainous areas with dense vegetation within the northwest of the province, allies of the burning tongues and added issues for the media on the scene. The intense gusts of wind on Monday, along with the forest mass, have contributed to the event of the fireplace and there are fears of the creation of recent outbreaks. “The wind and the type of fuel have made the Brañuelas forest fire advance at high speed. The thermal inversion knocks down the smoke column and distributes embers that can open new outbreaks. Narrow and deep valleys with a high slope make it difficult to extinguish,” reported the Department of the Environment on the social community X, previously Twitter. Sparking implies that the wind strikes the burning needles of the timber and after they fall in secure areas, they unfold the sparks and generate new outbreaks.

The Junta de Castilla y León has mobilised 39 firefighting personnel, of which 28 stay by late afternoon, and these have been bolstered by the Military Emergency Unit, primarily based in León, and firefighters from the Forest Fire Reinforcement Brigades (BRIF, depending on the Ministry of Ecological Transition) from close by Tabuyo. One of those firefighters, who has simply arrived on the fireplace space, summarises the scenario to EL PAÍS: “Well, the thing is that the fire has moved to El Bierzo, towards the towns of Almagarinos and Tremor de Abajo. They are very bad areas to work in. The weather, except for the wind, can help with the night work, but the wind, as I said, will not make it easy. For now, the work will focus on ensuring that the fire does not reach the towns I mentioned to you.” The regular first job for the groups is to “protect the towns” to stop the injury to the cities and temperatures. The brigades are assured that low temperatures and humidity will cease the fireplace from spreading and assist extinguish it, however gusts of wind could make their job tougher: “It is blowing quite hard and there is a lot of fuel available, the wind is not going to help.”

“They are inspecting the work area to see if it is safe or not to work. There is an added handicap, which are the mine chimneys, very deep holes in the ground,” provides the firefighter. The Junta de Castilla y León nonetheless doesn’t know the causes of the fireplace and can’t calculate the floor space burned to date.