WILDFIRE IN SOUTH OF SPAIN FORCES THOUSANDS TO FLEE THEIR HOMES

Since it started on Wednesday in the mountainous Sierra Bermeja above Estepona, a popular area with British visitors and pensioners, a wildfire fuelled by strong winds has displaced over 2,000 people and killed one emergency worker.

Massive clouds of smoke could be seen from miles away rising above the mountains. Firefighters were seen battling flames in the dry, wooded landscape, according to footage given by emergency services.

Evacuees, some elderly, sat around plastic tables in a sports centre in the nearby town of Ronda, as volunteers brought in bottled water, chairs and supplies.

Emergency crews also cleared people from the towns and villages of Jubrique, Farajan, Pujerra, Alpandeire and Juzcar on Sunday in the hills where the fire is burning amid high late-summer temperatures. Five other communities were evacuated on Friday.

The fire had an “unusual power and strength” and was advancing in several directions, Alejandro Garcia from the forest fire agency’s operational centre told reporters.

Pedro Sanchez, the Prime Minister, announced the deployment of a military emergency force to assist in the fight against the fire. “In the face of the fire that is destroying the province of Malaga, we will work in coordination and without rest,” he declared on Twitter.

According to preliminary data from the European Commission’s Copernicus satellite, the fire covered more than 6,000 hectares (14,800 acres), according to the environment ministry.

365 firefighters, supported by 41 aircraft and 25 vehicles, were battling the wildfire, according to Andalusia’s regional forest fire department.

On Friday, regional environment chief Carmen Crespo stated that the fire appeared to have been deliberately ignited, and that investigators were attempting to learn additional details.