The fire, which has spread to the mountainous Cruz de Tejeda region popular with tourists for its breathtaking views, is “extremely fierce” and “unstable”, said Canary Islands president Angel Victor Torres in a statement.
No fatalities have been reported.
Cuatro aviones #Apagafuegos operados por el #43Grupo y otros cuatro #helicópteros #SúperPuma @AirbusHeli del #82Grupo #SAR del #Ala46 #Canarias están a disposición de la lucha contra el #IFGranCanaria #IFValleseco #IFArtenara #IFTejeda #ApagaYVamonos @UMEgob @mapagob pic.twitter.com/xfW9bwF9q8
— Ejército del Aire (@EjercitoAire) August 19, 2019
More than 700 firefighters and 16 aircraft battled to contain the flames, hampered by strong winds and high temperatures.
Actualizamos los datos del #IFValleseco #IFGranCanaria.
? 8.000 vecinos evacuados.
? 700 efectivos trabajando sobre el terreno.
? 16 aeronaves actuando en la extinción del fuego.Seguimos en directo en @BDCanariasTV ?▶️https://t.co/AUTQBd7mtD pic.twitter.com/CNIIhPRo7G
— RTVC (@RTVCes) August 19, 2019
With the temperature set to rise Monday, authorities estimate it could take days before the blaze is brought under control.
“The next few hours will be very important because the weather forecast for the night is not good,” Torres said.
The fire broke out days after another wildfire in the same region forced the evacuation of hundreds.
Gran Canaria is the second most populous of the Canary Islands in theAtlantic off the northwest coast of Africa.
The Canary Islands received 13.7 million foreign visitors last year, over half of them from Britain and Germany.
Spain is frequently plagued by huge forest fires because of its arid summer climate.
READ ALSO: Most of Spain on alert for wildfire risk as temperatures soar
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