Having just spent three days in the municipality of Otivar, it is now apparent how lucky locals were that on that night, last month, there were high winds.

A strange thing to say when talking about mountain fires but it was precisely the intensity, and above all the wind direction – that pushed the fire downhill. Had there been little wind or it had been coming up the valley instead of down it, the fire-damage area would have been much, much greater.

As for the cause, a local farmer had been burning cuttings and thought he had put the fire out before he went home… but the winds brought it back to life that night.

If you cover a fire with plenty of earth, it is more effective than dousing it with water, because when it evaporates the ashes are still exposed and if you get enough wind…

(News: Otivar, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)