Wildfire in Costa Brava's Portbou: expected to be stabilized by midnight

Firefighters expect to stabilize the wildfire burning in the northern town of Portbou since Friday afternoon by midnight on Saturday.

A descend of the northern wind, named 'Tramuntana' in the Alt Empordà county, in the morning allowed seaplanes and aerial units to take off to battle the flames. The blaze in the northernmost area of the Costa Brava is "human-made" and affected over 570 hectares, as rural agents reported on Saturday midday, and was later updated on the afternoon by Catalan authorities.

During the morning, two seaplanes were deployed to analyze the wildfire and the possibility of tackling it from the sky due to the strong winds. The Spanish interior ministry also had several units ready to help, which would have been added to the six helicopters already on site.

The fire has affected around 500 hectares, and the right flank was the most concerning one. This was facing the town of Llançà and the Cap de Creus natural park. However, firefighters, in the early hours of Saturday, were "happy" with the evolution, as the wind was expected to decrease its strength during the day. The government had up to 300 agents in the zone.

Meanwhile, rural agents locked down the area where the wildfire is thought to have started and believe it is human-made.

Flames started near the reservoir, a site with some buildings.

A lockdown had been issued for the municipalities of Portbou, Colera, and the northern area of Llançà but it was lifted on Saturday night. During the first night of the wildfire, around 4,000 residents in Portbou saw water and electricity supplies cut. Some others also reported not having any phone signal.

Not a first

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.