Two dead and 5,600 hectares burned in west Catalonia wildfire

Two people have lost their lives in a wildfire burning in west Catalonia since Tuesday evening. 

Firefighters informed that the victims were the owner and a worker from a local farm.

One of the main hypotheses is that the owner tried to rescue the worker, who was feeling sick from the smoke.

However, their car became stuck in a rocky area, and despite getting out of it, both were unable to escape.

The fire in the La Noguera, La Segarra, and L'Urgell counties has burned 5,577 hectares of land, according to the forest rangers.

Of the burned land, nearly 4,000 hectares are agricultural, 1,500 hectares are forest, and the rest is urban.

The towns most affected are Torrefeta i Florejacs, Vilanova de l'Aguda, Cabanabona, Oliola, and Agramunt.

Authorities have managed to stabilize the fire, but it remains active. Firefighters expect to declare the fire under control on Wednesday afternoon.

In addition to the two fatalities, two firefighters have been injured. One of them has injuries from sparks in his eyes, and the other was hospitalized with a mild condition after pieces of the roof of a collapsed haystack fell on him.

Around 50 brigades worked to extinguish the fire overnight, and firefighters rule out any more fatalities.

On Wednesday morning, there were 35 teams working on the fire, with a total of 130 firefighters working to put it out, and five aerial units.

The evolution of the blaze overnight has been positive, but it is expected that tasks will be complicated on Wednesday due to the high temperatures.

Fire origin

Forest rangers, who are responsible for determining the causes of wildfires, are currently working under the hypothesis that the blaze was ignited by a farming mower.

The affected area lies within one of Catalonia's key cereal-producing regions, and much of the land that burned is agricultural.

Cereal harvesting, which typically takes place between July and September, carries a high wildfire risk due to the use of heavy machinery under extreme heat conditions, combined with dry, highly flammable vegetation.

This year, however, the harvesting season began early, in June, as unusually high temperatures caused the cereal crops to mature ahead of schedule.

In addition, abundant rainfall earlier in the year led to a strong harvest, but also to increased vegetation growth, providing more fuel for potential fires.

In fact, forest rangers launched a wildfire prevention campaign at the beginning of June, specifically aimed at reducing fire risks from agricultural machinery during the harvest.

The agricultural union Asaja said the wildfire caused significant losses, especially to unharvested wheat and harvested barley stubble, and straw storage facilities were burned and severely damaged.

The union is calling on the Agriculture Department to implement an economic plan that compensates local farmers for their losses "as quickly as possible."

Sixth generation fire

Firefighters say the western Catalan blaze is a sixth generation fire, where the flames spread at a peak speed of 28 kilometers per hour, one of the highest recorded in fires in Europe.

Local winds around the fire reached 120 kilometers per hour, and the pyrocumulus created by the high energy of the flames and atmospheric conditions rose 14,000 meters before collapsing.

Firefighters are currently working on a perimeter of 6,500 hectares and about 40 kilometers long. The assessment of the affected area was made during the night and a reassessment will be made during the day, with the participation of forest rangers. 

Catalan president urges caution

Catalan president Salvador Illa has called for "caution" in a visit to the area of the fire.

The Socialist leader warned that Wednesday "will be a very risky day" and made the point that "fires are no longer as they were in the past," recalling that this blaze generated a pyroclastic flow 17 kilometers high and propagation speeds of up to 28 kilometers per hour.

He also expressed his condolences over the deaths of two people. 

Catalonia and wildfires

Catalonia is one of the European regions most vulnerable to wildfires. Its hot, dry summers, combined with strong winds, vast forested areas, and rugged terrain, create the perfect conditions for forest fires. 

Over the past decade, Catalonia has experienced an average of 500 wildfires per year, with around 1,800 hectares burned annually. 

Listen to the podcast below to learn more about Catalonia's wildfire strategy.