Sierra Bermeja forest fire declared ‘controlled’, one week after it started

Firefighters have had to work in very difficult terrain, with steep areas and a lot of vegetation, which made definitive control of the fire very difficult. While hot spots may still remain within the perimeter, it should no longer reactivate outside of the controlled zone.

Now the last step remains, after its stabilisation and control, which is the final extinction.

At the height of the blaze almost 3,000 people were evacuated from properties in the urban area of ​​Benahavís and some residential developments in Estepona. Three members of the Junta’s Plan Infoca specialist forest fire brigade were injured fighting the flames. Two of them were discharged after a few hours, while the third suffered burns that affected 10% of his body.

Four workers have been arrested and questioned by the Guardia Civil in connection with the fire, after it was allegedly sparked by heavy machinery working on the La Resinera estate , a 6,500-hectare private property that belongs to the Libyan Foreign Bank (Forebank).