The fires of Madrid, Ávila and Toledo burn 45,000 hectares and affect 90,000 residents

Barcelona / MadridThe fires in Madrid and Ávila continue without control. Mid-morning, seeing the evolution of the fires, the Military Emergencies Unit (UME) decided to create a “unified emergency command” to work with a single sector: “It is the best way to manage and save time”, justified Francisco Javier Marcos, head of the UME, from the advanced command post in Cenicientos. “Treating this catastrophe and this fire as one [...] will contribute to the efficiency, coordination, and agility of all the decisions we make”, he stressed. But the presence of the authorities in this municipality eighty kilometers from the capital was numbered. In the evening, the territory under joint operational direction was also extended to the province of Toledo.

Ten minutes past one in the afternoon, the Spanish government delegate in Madrid, Francisco Martín, announced that the municipality had to be evacuated and, therefore, the advanced command post had to be dismantled to be moved to Navalcarnero. “Start leaving here in an orderly manner”, he asked the journalists. “We can do it calmly, we have time”, added the Madrid Minister of Environment, Carlos Novillo. “To make decisions, we need to be in an area that is not influenced”, he justified. So far, the fires in Madrid and Ávila have burned approximately 45,000 hectares in total. There are more than 85,000 people affected: 60,000 evacuated and 29,000 confined.

“We are talking about a unique fire that has not yet merged,” said Francisco Martín after the first joint CECOPI meeting with Castilla y León and the Community of Madrid. The forecast is that the flames will merge at two points: in San Martín de Valdeiglesias (Madrid) and in Tiemblo (Ávila). At midday, Francisco Martín spoke of an “extremely complex” moment with a forecast that the winds in the coming hours will further complicate extinction efforts. “We will do everything possible so that the windows that can be opened to control the fire in the coming hours and days allow us to put an end to this nightmare, but until then we must continue to exercise extreme caution and prudence,” he concluded.

One of the critical locations is the Tiétar Valley. At noon, an ES-Alert message was sent to seven municipalities in Ávila to evacuate around 30,000 people. The delegate of the Spanish government in Castilla y León, Nicanor Sen, explained that the night had been “complicated” due to the constant change in meteorological conditions and the proximity of the fire advancing from Madrid.

All this happened after the flames had remained out of control during the night from Friday to Saturday despite the firefighters' efforts to take advantage of the favorable hours to advance in the extinction. One of the main obstacles is the weather, which hinders the work of the extinction corps. At an early hour, the Spanish government reported that a day with a “meteorologically complex scenario” was foreseen with a “new increase in wind intensity” and “abrupt changes in direction”. The wind is expected to reach thirty kilometers per hour sustained, with gusts of up to sixty.

During the night, the fires advanced little and their intensity decreased significantly: “The change in meteorological conditions, with less wind, higher humidity and lower temperature, has benefited the fight against the fires,” explained the Ministry of the Interior. Likewise, the 112 emergency service of Madrid reported on X that they had worked in the early morning to take advantage of the more favorable meteorological conditions. Since the start of the fire, the Madrid emergency service has attended to 80 people: 65 were discharged on the spot and 15 were transferred to public hospitals, all with minor injuries.

During the night, 112 has deployed a device to assist residents of the affected towns with seventeen ambulances, a psychologist, and two intensive care units (ICU). The regional government of Madrid has asked citizens to avoid traveling to the areas affected by the fire, not to go to reservoirs or recreational areas near the affected spaces, and to follow the instructions of the security forces. In a message on the same social network, it recalled that facilitating the work of emergency teams helps to save lives. Currently, there are twelve Madrid municipalities evacuated and four urban centers confined.

Poor air quality in Madrid

Due to the proximity of the fires, the air quality in the city of Madrid, where 3.5 million inhabitants live, is “not good” and the levels of fine suspended particles are “far above” what the World Health Organization recommends. The Minister of Health, Mónica García, has called to “avoid physical activity and stay outdoors” and has recommended that people who leave home and encounter smoke or ash use FFP2 masks and goggles to protect their eyes.