3 Wildfire fighters die as blazes hit France, Spain and Portugal
Pastor Dale Morgan
Three Wildfire fighters die at blazes in France, Spain and Portugal *
SAINT TROPEZ, France, Aug 15 (AFP) Aug 15, 2006
Three firefighters died Tuesday in the south of France when their
vehicle plunged off the road as fire officials there as well as in Spain
and Portugal battled to get the upper hand over blazes that have
devastated forests and property.
The firefighters who died lost their lives near Ramatuelle on the French
Riviera when their vehicle came off the road and fell into a ravine in
an area where fire officials had been fighting a blaze that engulfed 56
hectares (xxx acres). A fourth fireman was injured in the crash.
Nearly 100 firefighters had managed to beat back the flames, not far
from the jet-setters' holiday resort of Saint Tropez which threatened
luxury villas and forced the evacuation of 4,000 people.
Spain said it had finally got control over scores of fires which had
been started -- many apparently deliberately -- over the past 12 days in
its northwest Galicia region.
And Portugal lowered its fire warning from "orange", the second-highest
level, to "yellow" as forecasts of lower temperatures and rain were
expected to prevent the spread of any fires.
In Galicia the local authorities said that the situation was
"practically normalised" with only four blazes out of control at 8:00 am
(0600 GMT) and 24 contained or almost extinguished, compared with more
than 100 at the same time on some recent days.
"There has been a huge improvement in the situation," said a spokeswoman
from the rural environment department.
"The wind has dropped and the fires are not advancing anything like as
fast."
Rain is forecast for Wednesday "which would be needed for everything to
be finished."
The 12 days of fires have cost four lives in Galicia and destroyed vast
areas of forest, though the only figure given by the authorities is
"tens of thousands of hectares".
The full extent of the damage is the subject of political controversy.
The regional government, a coalition of socialists and Galician
nationalists, has said it will provide more accurate statistics within
the next two days.
The conservative opposition has put forward a figure of 175,486 hectares
(433,000 acres) ravaged, basing its calculation on satellite photographs.
Several local media have reported the government as saying the real
figure is less than half that number.
The head of the Spanish association of timber industries Juan Jose Busto
has estimated that at least 100,000 hectares have been lost, and that
the record 1989 loss of 220,000 hectares could be reached.
"It takes 30 to 40 years to reproduce a tree and at this rate we shall
find ourselves without raw materials," he said.
At least 27 suspected arsonists have been arrested, nine of whom have
been put in preventive detention, while four have been placed in
psychiatric hospitals.
In the past most fires have been the result of pyromania and
carelessness but the authorities say that this season's blazes in
Galicia indicate "a new criminality with political, economic or other
objectives".
Unprecedented resources were mustered to fight the flames: 2,000 troops,
15,000 firefighters, among them 7,000 volunteers, 70 fixed wing aircraft
and helicopters and 700 vehicles.
The rain forecast for Galicia was also expected to help firefighters in
Portugal to the south, where all blazes were under control by Tuesday
morning.
The body of a 67-year-old man was found in a path in a wooded area near
the central town of Oliveira de Frades late Monday, the first civilian
to perish in dozens of wildfires which have swept Portugal this summer.
His neighbours said he died while trying to aid firefighters, at least
seven of whom have died.
Twenty-three people have been arrested in Portugal on suspicion of
deliberately starting fires. But government officials mainly blame the
negligence of landowners who do not clear their properties of brush
before the hot summer months.