Madrid, July 13 (EFE).- Spanish authorities said on Monday they expect to bring the deadly wildfire in Los Gallardos, in the southern province of Almería, under control during if favorable weather conditions persist, after the blaze showed little activity overnight.
The fire, the most severe of several active wildfires in Spain, killed 13 people last week and has burned about 7,000 hectares in the Levante area of Almería province.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Andalusian regional president Juanma Moreno visited the affected area on Monday and highlighted the coordination between national and regional authorities in the firefighting effort.
Sánchez renewed his call for a broad national pact to address the climate emergency and pledged financial support for those affected.
«The climate emergency kills, and we must rise to the challenge,» he said.
Moreno said the wildfire could be brought under control during the day if weather conditions remained stable, noting that it had already entered what authorities described as a «zero operational situation.»
Earlier on Monday, the Andalusian regional government said favorable overnight conditions, including winds below 10 km/h and relative humidity rising to 82 percent, had allowed firefighters to continue consolidating containment lines and extinguishing remaining hotspots.
Authorities have identified six of the 13 victims. One Spanish citizen, two British nationals, one French national, one Belgian national, and one American woman.
Evacuations and other wildfires
In the northeastern region of Catalonia, Civil Protection sent emergency alerts to mobile phones ordering the precautionary evacuation of four residential areas because of a wildfire in Aiguamúrcia, which firefighters expect to stabilize later on Monday.
Firefighters said 95 percent of the blaze’s perimeter had been stabilized overnight, with only part of the western flank still requiring containment.
Another wildfire classified as level 1 for potential danger continues to threaten the Bierzo area in the northwestern province of León, where another fire in Caboalles de Arriba remains at the same alert level.
Other wildfires remain active in Canseco, in the La Robla area of León province, and in Vanidodes, in the Cepeda area, while blazes in Ribota de Sajambre and Navatejera, also in León province, have been stabilized.
The coming hours are also expected to be critical for a wildfire in Peñarroya de Tastavins, in the eastern province of Teruel, where about 300 personnel are working to prevent the fire from spreading across a stream into a densely forested area.
Although no evacuation orders have been issued there, residents have been advised to leave their homes only when necessary and to keep doors and windows closed. The blaze has burned about 350 hectares.
Meanwhile, a wildfire that broke out on Saturday in the northwestern Galician municipality of Ribas de Sil remained active on Monday after burning about 140 hectares.
However, conditions improved significantly overnight, allowing rail services and a provincial road that had been closed for several hours to reopen. EFE
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