Authorities cry arson as fires devastate northwestern Spain

A wave of fires ravaged thousands of hectares of woodland in the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia, emergency service and media reports said.

It was estimated that there were over 140 fires in the region between Friday and Sunday, Xinhua reported. However, no death has been reported so far.

On Sunday night, over 350 firemen were battling 17 active fires, aided by 20 aircraft and 160 members of the Military Emergency Response Unit.

The wave of blazes around nine different municipal areas in the provinces of Pontevedra, Lugo and Ourense are assessed to have destroyed between 4000-5000 hectares of land.

Given the sudden outbreak of so many fires around the same time, it seemed that majority of them could have been started deliberately.

Regional President Alberto Nunez Feijoo called them "bordering on homicidal" and the Rural Environment Council also mentioned a "clear intent" behind the numerous blazes.

The flames spread rapidly due to the current drought affecting many areas of Spain, including Galicia, with high winds from the tail-end of hurricane Ophelia also contributing to their spread.

Another major factor that aggravated the catastrophe was Feijoo's regional government laying off 436 firefighters at the end of summer.

--IANS

amit