Hundreds evacuated from Spanish forest fires
Pastor Dale Morgan
Hundreds evacuated from Spanish forest fires*
MADRID, Aug 5 (AFP) Aug 05, 2006
Hundreds of people were evacuated as firefighters battled blazes across
large areas of northeastern Spain on Saturday, Catalonia's regional
government said.
One fire, which ravaged 259 hectares (639 acres) near the towns of
Cistella and Terrades, another was still raging after destroying more
than 627 hectares near Ventello.
A total of 453 people were forced to leave their homes to escape the
second fire, the authorities said.
Cadena Ser radio said that in northwestern Galicia, where two people
were found dead in their burnt-out car on Friday, a total of 17 small
forest fires were still burning Saturday.
However according to the environment ministry the scale of the outbreaks
so far this year has been much smaller than in 2005, which saw the worst
drought in Spain since reliable records began in 1947.
Between January and July a total of 9,000 fires were recorded, 7,400
fewer than last year, and the area affected was 60 percent less.