Well, the number of forest and mountain brush fires is 85% down on the same period 2012 but even so the devastation is heartbreaking – it always is. The summer is far from over as fires go; down here we still have to hold our collective breaths until the rains come.

Up to the 11th of August just over 25,027 hectares of land has been consumed by flames, but when you compare it to last year, with its 163,518 hectares, you can only rejoice instead of lament. In fact, going by the average over the last ten years (87,440 hectares) it’s still only less than a third.

But its not only about a huge drop in the area affected by fires, but also a large drop in the number of big fires, too. Last year there were 27 fires that affected over 500 hectares, whereas they years there have only been eight during the same time period.

The strange thing about these fires in general though is that the majority (43%) happen in ‘wet Ppain;’ i.e., the North-West, whereas in ‘dry Spain’ (Mediterranean coast) it only accounts for 22%. However, just because there are more fires in the wet north it doesn’t mean that they lose more trees – Central and Southern Spain account for 42% and 35% of destroyed woodlands.

One last fact; and a rather sad one: according to ecologist organizations man is responsible for 96% of all the forest and mountain-bush fires.

(News: Spain)