Tijarafe (La Palma) (EFE) , which are the majority of the 4,000 initially evicted, because that area includes the town of Tijarafe and almost the entire municipality of Puntagorda.
The president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, has stressed that the fire “is not controlled” and that the area above the highway is still closed, but it is expected that tonight there will be temperature and humidity conditions that will favor its extinction.
He has recognized that they are concerned about the flank of the Caldera de Taburiente National Park, to which hardly any resources have been allocated until now, because the defense of populated areas has been prioritized.
The LP-1 highway will remain open tonight for residents who return to their homes until 10:30 p.m.; then, it will be closed until 6.30 in the morning to carry out some works. The two road accesses to the Roque de los Muchachos astronomical observatory, which had been evicted as a precaution, were also opened.
Less affected area than estimated
Those responsible for coordinating the emergency have announced that they are examining the aerial and satellite images to specify the affected area, because they believe it is about 1,000 hectares less than what had been managed up to now, which was about 4,600 hectares.
It is expected that the works during the night, in which 155 troops are assigned, will allow the perimeter of the fire and liquidate the fire in all possible areas.
Among these night troops will be the reinforcements that arrived this Sunday from Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria, as well as members of the Military Emergency Unit and a checkpoint from the Caldera de Taburiente National Park.
Although the front of the Caldera de Taburiente is of concern because it has not yet been possible to deploy resources in the area, it has also been verified that the fire is going slower than previously thought within the National Park. That front can be attacked from the air on Monday as soon as visibility allows, sometimes hindered by clouds and smoke.
Night work will affect Cruz del Llano, the Izcagua ravine and El Reventón.
“The evolution is very different from that of Saturday,” said Montserrat Román, head of Civil Protection and Emergencies of the Government of the Canary Islands, but she wanted to convey caution because the fire remains active and is not controlled, she has insisted.
The president of the Cabildo de La Palma, Sergio Rodríguez, has also stressed that “the news is positive”, who has stressed that when the return of the evicted is authorized, it is because all security guarantees exist.
The partial relocation takes place until 10:30 p.m. in convoys organized by the security forces present, the Civil Guard, the Canary Islands Police and local police.
“The weather has played in its favor and the media have been able to work in the most worrying area, that of the houses and the southern flank,” he explained.
No new figures for affected buildings have been provided. The latest data pointed to a minimum of twenty, including homes, tool rooms and warehouses.
550 people and 11 aircraft
The Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Security of the Government of the Canary Islands, Nieves Lady Barretto, explained that for this Monday, the third day of the fire, the same operation will be deployed as this Sunday, made up of 550 people on the ground and eleven air means, including one of coordination.
The fire originated at 1:00 a.m. on Saturday in an uninhabited area of the municipality of Puntagorda, El Fayal, and spread very rapidly throughout the day, forcing the preventive eviction of the entire population of that municipality and the population center from Tijarafe.
The security forces are still investigating the origin. Fernando Clavijo has not wanted to enter into speculation about the causes because all efforts are focused on extinction work. EFE