Wildfire in Costa Brava's Portbou affects 150 hectares

The wildfire in the northern town of Portbou in the Costa Brava, which started on Friday at 4:39 pm, has already burned down 150 hectares, as the Catalan rural agents reported. The blaze has forced a lockdown on the municipality of Colera and closed down over 14 kilometers of the N-260 road. 

Around 57 units work tirelessly to extinguish the blaze, which could affect up to 700 hectares. Due to the strong wind, aerial units of the firefighters are having limited operations.

Units are tackling two fronts of the flames, one on the left side facing the town of Colera and the right towards the Cap de Creus natural park.

The situation is complicated for firefighters, as on Friday evening, the Alt Empordà county was strongly impacted by la 'Tramuntana,' a strong and characteristic wind coming from the north, very typical in Costa Brava.

Authorities are also asking for those in the Sant Miquel camping and the La Rovellada neighborhood to stay indoors. Eight people have had to be evacuated from their homes in Portbou.

The 112 emergency hotline received over 140 phone calls regarding the fire, and the smoke is visible from far away. Civil protection has already recommended that Port de la Selva residents stay indoors and close doors and windows to avoid inhaling smoke.

The area had already suffered another fire in mid-April, originating in Northern Catalonia. On that occasion, 900 hectares were affected, 135 of which were in the Alt Empordà county.

The Catalan climate action ministry already warned of a very difficult situation and high risk of wildfires in the area, as well as in the coastline of the southern Tarragona and Terres de l'Ebre zones.

Access to natural parks, such as Cap de Creus, has been recently restricted due to the high fire risk. In fact, Catalonia has restrictions in 44 municipalities due to the 'very high to extreme' risk of wildfires.

Forecasts suggest the situation of low humidity, strong winds, and very dry areas because of the drought could change on Sunday.