The Niebla fire (Huelva) surpasses 20,000 hectares burned

The forest fire in Niebla, in the Spanish province of Huelva, has already scorched more than 20,000 hectares and keeps hundreds of residents evacuated, in what authorities call a fire “beyond extinction capacity”. Some estimates raise the affected area to 25,000 hectares, according to this Tuesday, August 11 cut.

A “window of opportunity”

A change in the wind pattern opened this Tuesday a “window of opportunity” for extinguishing teams, according to El Confidencial and other outlets. However, El País warns the fire “still has days of work ahead”: the flames remain active and the risk that they jump to the neighboring province of Seville keeps the area on alert.

More than 150 personnel are fighting the flames, while almost 500 residents remain evacuated and several roads stay closed.

From 20,000 to 25,000 hectares

The burned area figures vary by the time of the cut: Antena 3 and ABC placed the damage at more than 20,000 hectares overnight, and local authorities raised the estimate to 25,000 on Tuesday morning, when the wind changed. The fire, declared around the Huelva municipality of Niebla, has also caused damage to the vegetation of the reserve and the surrounding farmland.

The fear of the 2004 fire

The scale of the incident has revived in Huelva and Seville the memory of the great 2004 fire, which left two dead and devastated tens of thousands of hectares. High temperatures and prolonged drought turn this area into a powder keg every summer, and the Niebla fire shows it again.

The key figure: 20,000 hectares scorched —the equivalent of about 28,000 soccer fields— in a fire that is still not under control.