Fires Destroy Thousands of Hectares of Spain Forests

Wildfires advance in Almonaster la Real in Huelva, Spain, Thursday Aug. 27, 2020. (A.Perez, Europa Press via AP)
Wildfires advance in Almonaster la Real in Huelva, Spain, Thursday Aug. 27, 2020. (A.Perez, Europa Press via AP)
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Fires Destroy Thousands of Hectares of Spain Forests

Wildfires advance in Almonaster la Real in Huelva, Spain, Thursday Aug. 27, 2020. (A.Perez, Europa Press via AP)
Wildfires advance in Almonaster la Real in Huelva, Spain, Thursday Aug. 27, 2020. (A.Perez, Europa Press via AP)

The wildfires that broke out in Huelva, southwest of Spain, have destroyed around 10,000 hectares of forests- an area equivalent to more than 14,000 football fields.

The local authorities said Monday that around 3,200 people fled the fire in the province, local media reported.

The residents of Almonaster la Real, a town of 1900 people, have been hard hit by the fires. The town is located in a mountainous area about 40 kilometers east of the Portuguese border and 100 kilometers northwest of Seville.

According to reports, the army assisted more than 500 firefighters to end the fires with the help of 24 helicopters and aircraft.

"They hope a weather change, with less wind and air, could enhance local efforts to extinguish fires. But the fires are still out of control," a spokesman for the fire department told Europa Press.

Over the weekend, a separate fire destroyed some 300 hectares of forest in the Murcia region in eastern Spain.

The latest official figures indicate that fires caused relatively little damage in Spain this year, before the Huelva fire broke out.

By mid-August, the fires had destroyed 31,000 hectares, less than half of the 72,000 hectares destroyed by fires in 2019.

The average area destroyed by fires over the past ten years until mid-August was about 63,000 hectares.



Indonesian Passenger Ferry Catches Fire at Sea, Killing at Least 5

Indonesia rescue team members sail on dinghies during a search operation for missing passengers, after the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya ferry carrying 65 people sank near the Indonesian island of Bali, in Bali, Indonesia, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo
Indonesia rescue team members sail on dinghies during a search operation for missing passengers, after the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya ferry carrying 65 people sank near the Indonesian island of Bali, in Bali, Indonesia, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo
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Indonesian Passenger Ferry Catches Fire at Sea, Killing at Least 5

Indonesia rescue team members sail on dinghies during a search operation for missing passengers, after the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya ferry carrying 65 people sank near the Indonesian island of Bali, in Bali, Indonesia, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo
Indonesia rescue team members sail on dinghies during a search operation for missing passengers, after the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya ferry carrying 65 people sank near the Indonesian island of Bali, in Bali, Indonesia, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo

A passenger ferry carrying hundreds of people caught fire at sea on Sunday off Sulawesi island in Indonesia, killing at least five people, officials said. More than 280 people were rescued and evacuation efforts were ongoing.

The KM Barcelona 5 was headed to Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province, from Talaud, an island district in the province when it caught fire in waters near Talise, said Vice Adm. Denih Hendrata, commander of the Indonesian Fleet Command, The AP news reported.

He said that three navy ships had been deployed, and 284 passengers and crew members had been evacuated so far. The rescue operation included assistance from local fishermen, who saved some survivors wearing life jackets as they were drifting to nearby islands in the choppy waters.

Rescuers retrieved five bodies, including a pregnant woman.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, and no exact figures of passengers and crew members onboard the ferry.

“We are still focusing on evacuation efforts,” Hendrata said, adding that the cause of the fire was being investigated.

Photos and videos released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed terrified passengers, mostly wearing life jackets, jumping into the sea. Orange flames and black smoke billowed from the burning vessel.

Indonesia is an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands where ferries are a common method of travel. Disasters occur regularly, with weak safety enforcement often blamed.

Residents of Mentawai Islands found several people stranded on July 14 after a speedboat carrying 18 people capsized during a storm the day before, authorities said. All were in good condition.

A ferry sank near Indonesia’s resort island of Bali early this month, leaving at least 19 dead and 16 others missing. A two-week search operation involved more than 1,000 rescuers, three navy ships, 15 boats, a helicopter and divers.