- Fire in Tejeda, Gran Canaria: last minute today of the evolution of the fire on the island, extinction and evacuees
- The fire in Gran Canaria could stabilize in the next few hours
During the last day we have witnessed a large fire in Gran Canaria, the most serious that has occurred on the island in the last four years. According to sources from the Cabildo Emergencies, the origin of the fire occurred in Cortijo de Huertas, which is part of the municipality of Tejeda, and from there it has spread to other areas.. After extending approximately 400 hectares, and causing the preventive evacuation of many people, the fire is increasingly controlled, and the technicians of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria rule out declaring it with a level 2 severity, as it did with the 2019 fire, among other things. things because the weather forecasts are favorable and that facilitates the work of extinction.
Be that as it may, there is no doubt that these are difficult times for the inhabitants of Tejeda and the surrounding areas. In this context, the testimony of Ruymán Mena, a shepherd who is precisely dedicated to fire prevention, and whose pen is located right next to where the fire originated, is giving people talk.. In addition to managing to save the lives of his sheep, it is likely that his work has contributed to the fact that the fire has not spread so much, since his animals have been important in cleaning the area. The video with his words has been released by the Canarian News and Audiovisual Agency, and later picked up by the institutional account of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, which defines it as “the most humane part of the forest fire in Tejeda”.
The most humane part of the forest fire in Tejeda 🔥
Ruymán Mena is a shepherd in the Cortijo de Huertas area. With his work, he helps in the prevention of fires. Today, he wanted to tell us about his experience at #IFTejeda.
🎞 @ACFIPRESS pic.twitter.com/G98rUEm9dC
– Cabildo Gran Canaria (@GranCanariaCab) July 26, 2023
As Mena explains, when he realized the existence of the fire, he quickly went to the corral and saw that the fire had reached “10 or 15 meters” from it, but the flames did not reach it thanks to the cleaning work that they have been carrying out. out the sheep, as part of the fire prevention that this shepherd takes care of. However, the smoke itself put them in danger, so Mena acted quickly to get the animals out of the corral and put them safely in an area on the outskirts.. Subsequently, he stayed up all night to check on the sheep and make sure they did not come near the fire..
A sustainable prevention
Sheep grazing is becoming one of the most effective and sustainable ways to prevent the spread of forest fires.. These animals feed on a large amount of dry plant matter, which, when the fire spreads, acts as “fuel” and makes the flames spread more quickly..
Reducing this matter allows better control of fires, and grazing acts as a firebreak; In addition, in the specific case of Gran Canaria, flammable bushes, such as broom or reed beds, had also been replaced in strategic places by grasslands, to prevent fires as devastating as the one four years ago from happening again..