The wildfire map of this Friday reflects a change in the main hotspots of Spain. The fire in Pinofranqueado, in the Cáceres region of Las Hurdes, continues with extinguishing work, although its favorable evolution has allowed for the lifting of some restrictions and the authorization of the return of some neighbors.
The main novelty is found in the Sierra Calderona, where a wildfire declared between Segorbe and Gátova concentrates the attention of emergency services. The fire, originated after a lightning strike, has forced the activation of situation 1 of the Special Plan against the Risk of Wildfires.
Official map of active fires from Copernicus
The European Forest Fire Information System, EFFIS, offers a public viewer to locate fires, heat points, and burned areas in Spain and the rest of Europe.
The map allows observing the perimeters detected by satellite, but the appearance of a heat point does not necessarily mean that there is an active wildfire. To know the official status of each emergency, the autonomous services of 112 and extinction must also be consulted.
Pinofranqueado improves and relaxes safety measures
The fire in Pinofranqueado remains active, but shows a more favorable evolution than during previous days. The improvement has allowed for the authorization of the return of the neighbors of Robledo, Castillo, and Avellanar, as well as lifting the confinement that affected Nuñomoral.
The device maintains surveillance over the perimeter and continues working in the sectors that still require consolidation work. The evolution of the wind will continue to be one of the determining factors to avoid possible reactivations.
A fire caused by lightning activates the emergency in the Sierra Calderona
The main new hotspot is located between Segorbe, in Castellón, and Gátova, in Valencia, in a forest area near the Natural Park of Sierra Calderona. The fire was declared during a storm episode and its origin is linked to the fall of a lightning strike.
The emergency has forced the activation of situation 1 of the special wildfire plan and the deployment of ground and aerial resources. The CV-25 road remains affected by the operation, while teams work in a difficult-to-access area and remain attentive to the meteorological evolution.
Las Peñas de Riglos remains stabilized and maintains restrictions
The fire in Las Peñas de Riglos, in Huesca, remains stabilized after ten days of emergency. The improvement has allowed for the progressive return of the evacuated population and reduced the level of extraordinary response.
However, the fire is still not extinguished. The operation continues to work on the affected perimeter and the Government of Aragón maintains access restrictions in certain areas while surveillance and consolidation work is completed.
Aldea del Fresno maintains a favorable evolution
The fire in Aldea del Fresno, in the Sierra Oeste de Madrid, continues stabilized and has left behind the situation of greater emergency. The confinements and evacuations adopted during the first hours have already been lifted.
The teams are maintaining surveillance and finishing work on the ground to eliminate possible hot spots. The favorable evolution allows for a reduction in pressure on the device, although the fire remains under monitoring until the extinction work is completed.
Niebla is controlled after the great emergency in Andalucía
The fire in Niebla, between Huelva and Sevilla, has been declared controlled after nearly two weeks of work. The fire was one of the major forest hotspots in August, but its favorable evolution has allowed for a transition from the emergency phase to surveillance work.
The teams are now maintaining perimeter monitoring and the necessary tasks to prevent re-ignition until it can be definitively declared extinguished.
To know the specific situation of a municipality, these sources should be used:
- EFFIS-Copernicus: satellite location, perimeters, and hot spots.
- Protección Civil: emergencies and state deployment.
- DGT: closed or affected roads.
- AEMET: daily fire risk level.
- Autonomous services of 112: official status of each fire, evacuations, and confinements.
Searcher: check the fire risk today in your municipality
Enter the name of your municipality in the searcher to know the level of forest fire risk forecasted today according to AEMET. The searcher is updated daily and shows the situation in over 8,000 Spanish municipalities through the Forest Fire Danger Index (IPIF).
↔ Slide the table sideways to check all days.
The system classifies the risk into six levels:
- Very low.
- Low.
- Moderate.
- High.
- Very high.
- Extreme.
Each municipality appears classified according to the predominant level expected for that day.
How the fire risk map works
The search engine uses the information published daily by the State Meteorological Agency through its *Forest Fire Danger Index (IPIF).
This system combines different meteorological variables that directly influence the possibility of a forest fire starting and spreading, among them:
- Temperature.
- Relative humidity.
- Wind speed and direction.
- Accumulated precipitation.
- State of the vegetation.
With all this data, AEMET prepares a forecast map that allows estimating the level of danger present at each point in the national territory.
What each risk level means
The index used by AEMET divides the fire risk into six categories:
- Very low* and low indicate that the weather conditions are not very favorable for the start of a large fire.
- The moderate level advises taking extra precautions, especially in activities that may generate sparks or flames.
- When the risk becomes high, very high, or extreme, the chances of a fire starting and spreading rapidly increase considerably, especially if episodes of intense wind or very high temperatures coincide.