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Wildfire burns across 6,000 square metres of countryside in Es Cap

focescap3At five o' clock this afternoon, the Formentera Council fire brigade and employees of Ibanat (Institut Balear de la Natura), assisted by surveillance aircraft and a fire brigade helicopter, succeeded in extinguishing a wildfire that had broken out three hours earlier in the can Parra neighbourhood of Es Cap de Barbaria. Also on the scene were officers of the Formentera local police and Guardia Civil as well as members of the island civil protection force.

The fire affected a 6,000-sq.-m area composed of pines and savina junipers in addition to other low-growing vegetation. The brigade's helicopter was decisive in the success of operations, dousing flames with water before returning to the reservoir beside the water treatment plant to refill its load. It was with the help of water shot from the local firetruck that the fire was finally put out altogether.

The cause of the blaze remains to be confirmed, though toy bows and arrows found not far from the site indicate that a child's game of cowboys and Indians could have been at the origin. Silvia Tur, councillor of the environment, reminded residents that “extremely dry areas of woods and countryside have meant that fires on Formentera have been totally forbidden since 1 May. A failure to comply with these regulations can unfortunately translate into serious harm to people and the surrounding environment”.