Blaze ‘out of control’ as more people flee Spain’s La Palma
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Blaze ‘out of control’ as more people flee Spain’s La Palma
Subject :IR
Section: Places in news
Context:
- At least 4,000 people have been evacuated as a wildfire rages “out of control” on the Spanish Canary Island of La Palma while Europe struggles to cope with a heatwave.
Details:
- The forest fire is the first natural crisis on the island since a volcanic eruption in September 2021.
- The forest fire in La Palma started in the early hours of Saturday in El Pinar, a wooded area in the northern part of the island.
- In Tenerife, another of the eight Canary Islands, a forest fire also broke out.
About La Palma:
- La Palma is the most north-westerly island of the Canary Islands, Spain.
- Its geography is a result of a volcanic formation and has an area of 708 square kilometres making it the fifth largest of the eight main Canary Islands.
- Its highest mountain is the Roque de los Muchachos, at 2,423 metres being second among the peaks of the Canaries only to the peaks of the Teide massif on Tenerife.
- The Canary Islands are a group of ocean island volcanoes located off the coast of western Africa that have been formed by volcanic activity since around 20 million years ago. It comprises the Spanish provinces of Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Location of Canary Islands:
- The Canary archipelago(group of islands) is located in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1300 km South from mainland Spain and 115 km West from the African coast (Morocco).
- It includes 7 islands belonging to Spain, among which La Palma (in the North-West of the archipelago), Tenerife and Gran Canaria (central).
- Despite its distance from Europe, Canaries are an important tourist attraction, served by many connections.
