Junta Minister Antonio Sanz stated after the fire season had officially ended that the police had clarified the cause behind  88% of all fires that had taken place in Andalucía.

The 2024 fire season had officially concluded on the 15th of October, with the loss of 6,072 hectares of land affected by fires, with 683 of those corresponding to forest land and the rest brush fires. This number is 34% below the decade average (9,217 hectares).

 Infoca was called out on 613 occasions (109 large fires and 504 small fires affecting less than a hectare). Again, this is below the decade average of 731 call outs, with 118 fewer.

He explained that the high number of small fires that never grew into larger ones was because of the infoca’s fast response time and the efficiency in which they tackled them, catching them before they could spread.

He also had words of praise for the general public for their collaboration in spotting and reporting fires so that there could be a rapid response by Infoca units.

As for the large fires, (Grandes Incendios Forestales or GIFs affecting more than 500 hectares) there were four: Enix (Almería), 639 hectares; Tarifa (Cádiz), 572 hectares,  Níjar (Almería), 2,167 hectares and Andújar (Jaén), 530 hectares. 

To tackle all these fires during this fire season, Infoca counted on 4,700 personnel, from firefighters on foot to cistern drivers; from earth-moving-equipment operators to base comms.

Finally he praised the help provided by the Spanish Army unit, UME which deploys to emergency zones both in Spain and abroad, as well as the collaboration of Protection Civil volunteers and members of the various police forces.

News: Andalucia)

Keywords: Fire Season, Infoca, Large Fires, Hectares Affected, Forest Land, Brush Land, Investigation, Causes