Firefighters tackling the ongoing Catalonia wildfire have said they are optimistic about bringing it under control following a ‘difficult’ night.
More than 3,321 hectares of forest and farmland have been reduced to ash, meaning a long road to recovery for many communities in the Baix Ebre region of Tarragona.
Fanned by ferocious mistral winds, the flames raged with particular violence from Monday into early Tuesday, spreading fast across rugged terrain.
But by early Wednesday morning, more than 460 firefighters – with support from Spain’s Military Emergency Unit – had worked through the night to consolidate the inferno’s 30km perimeter.
According to the Catalan Fire Department, 90% of that perimeter line is now under control.
At first light, aerial units returned to the skies to target two key hotspots – one near Paüls, the other in Alfara de Carles – which remained too dangerous to reach on foot.
Helicopters from the Aragonese government joined the effort, flying in personnel and dousing critical areas.
Joan Rovira, head of operations for the Generalitat Fire Brigade, described these air resources as ‘essential.’
Though still days away from full extinguishment, the fire is nearing stabilisation, experts said.
The Civil Protection lifted confinement orders for several towns, including Xerta, Alfara de Carles, Aldover, Tivenys, and Roquete, as well as the Tortosa neighborhoods of Bitem, Jesus and Reguers.
However, Paüls is still under lockdown and nearly 18,000 residents remain with restricted mobility. Since the fire’s outbreak, the 112 emergency hotline has logged over 600 calls.
Rovira struck a more optimistic tone on Wednesday, telling a press conference that ‘the fire has a good prognosis’, citing calmer weather conditions after a brutal start.
The blaze ignited around noon Monday, just south of Paüls. Since then, more than 3,300 hectares have burned. Of the land torched, 75% was forest, the remainder agricultural.
Structural damage is significant but contained. In Xerta, a house, a greenhouse, a bungalow, and four vehicles were lost, with another home partially damaged. In Aldover, a farm building and a home sustained partial damage. Paüls has seen the worst with six buildings and four vehicles affected.
The Agents Rurals force has zeroed in on a potential point of ignition for the fire in an uncultivated area of one to two hectares that is neither remote nor hard to reach.
Regional coordinator Xavier Gilabert confirmed the location but stressed that the cause remains unclear.
‘The investigation will be complicated,’ he said, ‘and we still don’t have any evidence that points to how it started.’
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