The fire burning through an important natural park near Alcoy has already burned 250 hectares.

ValenciaThe forest fire that has been burning since around 1:00 PM in the Valencian town of Ibi, near the city of Alcoy in the province of Alicante, and which affects the Font Roja Natural Park, has already burned 250 hectares. The fire spread rapidly due to the weather conditions: temperatures above 35 degrees, humidity below 30%, and southerly winds exceeding 30 kilometers per hour. During the early hours of Saturday morning, emergency teams managed to stabilize the fire and also were able to deploy aircraft.

The equipment mobilized by the emergency services was unable to contain the flames and prevent it from affecting this protected area of high ecological value, one of the few deciduous forests remaining in the southern Valencian Community, home to a large number of holm oaks, but also maple and ash trees. These last three trees are becoming less common because they have been replaced by the Aleppo pine in most of the region.

The Spanish government delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, has confirmed that the fire started at the El Cenaculo religious residence in Ibi, but has specified that the cause is still unknown.

Starting in the San Pascual area and driven by the wind, the fire first burned the sunny side of the Menejador mountain range and scorched an area of scrubland and Aleppo pine. Upon reaching the mountain crest, it began to affect the natural park. According to the weather forecast, the gusts should ease as nightfall approaches, a circumstance that could help prevent the flames from crossing the crest and spreading to the north face. Preventing this is one of the main objectives of the firefighters, who have been fighting for hours to save the area of greatest ecological, wildlife, and landscape value. It is a race against time, given that tomorrow the westerly wind, which is very dry and warm, is expected to blow strongly in the area.

Due to the fire, the Alcoy City Council has closed access to the natural park, and the local police in Ibi have preventively evacuated 25 people from 15 scattered homes. For its part, the Valencian Government's Emergency Coordination Center has issued a special warning for the possible accumulation of smoke tonight in Ibi and Alcoy. It has also issued a second special warning for Saturday and Sunday due to the extreme risk of forest fires. The forecast indicates temperatures could exceed 40 degrees in many places with gusts of westerly or light winds of some intensity in the south of the territory.

At this point, twelve aircraft are operating in the area trying to control the spread of the flames. Eleven ground units and three helicopters from the Valencian Government's forest fire service, personnel from the Military Emergency Unit (UME), eleven fire engines, and twelve fire crews from the Alicante Provincial Council are also working.