Authorities on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria were set to evacuate more residents on Saturday as a forest fire broke out just days after another blaze raged in the same area.

Earlier in the evening, the island council said it had evacuated the Cross of Tejeda, a mountain pass popular for its spectacular views in the centre of Gran Canaria, and a nearby luxury hotel.

Later, it added that the centre of the nearby village of Tejeda and several other adjacent districts would also be evacuated.

It was unclear how many people this would involve, but Tejeda has a population of just under 2,000.

The council added it was blocking off roads near the blaze.

"Leave the area," it warned in capital letters.

The blaze comes just five days after firefighters managed to contain a fire in the same area of the Canary Islands archipelago that had sparked the evacuation of hundreds of people.

At the time, emergency services had warned that strong gusts of wind and an impending heatwave could fan the remaining embers into another fire.

Firefighters in Gran Canaria said helicopters had been sent to the zone.

In a statement, they said the blaze "doesn't look good at all with this temperature, winds and low humidity".

Water-dropping planes were not readily available as they had gone back to mainland Spain, over 1,000 kilometres away, they added.

One of these planes is now en route back to Gran Canaria, air traffic controllers said on their Twitter account.

Greek fire crews make progress on island blaze
Athens (AFP) Aug 16, 2019 - Firefighters in Greece on Friday made progress against a four-day wildfire on the island of Evia that has burned through a pine forest and threatened villages, officials said.

"The situation looks better today, there is no active front, but our forces remain in place," a fire department spokesman told AFP, adding that there were still "pockets of fire" smouldering in a ravine.

A massive force of nearly 400 firefighters backed by more than 100 vehicles, nine planes and four helicopters remains in the area.

Two water bombers from Italy and one from Spain are assisting the effort, the spokesman said.

"It's quite a large perimeter that needs to be monitored," civil protection spokesman Spyros Georgiou told AFP.

But as the situation was improving, the Italian and Spanish crews would be withdrawn from the operation by the evening, he said. They are to be decorated by the agency for their assistance on Saturday.

Rain is expected in the area on Saturday.

State agency ANA said the fire, which broke out Tuesday, has burned some 2,400 hectares (5,600 acres) including more than 1,000 hectares of dense pine forest.

"We should be able to have a clearer picture of the exact damage on Monday," Georgiou said.

After touring the area earlier in the week, he said that there was confirmed damage to animal pens and beehives.

EU Humanitarian Commissioner Christos Stylianides on Wednesday called the mobilisation of Greek forces "exemplary" after emergency crews managed to save inhabited areas.

A firefighter was hospitalised with burns on Tuesday, and at least four cars have been burned.

Authorities suspect arson was involved as the fire broke out in three separate locations near the village of Makrymalli.

Two Greek men were arrested Thursday on suspicion of setting fires in the Peloponnese peninsula.

A third Greek man was arrested in the same area on Friday.

Greece has been hit by a spate of wildfires since the weekend, fanned by gale-force winds and temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

Related Links
Forest and Wild Fires - News, Science and Technology

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