Edition 288
www.thecourier.es
Friday 9th September 2016
NORTHERN INFERNO
BY ALEX TRELINSKI
A
rsonists have been blamed for a spate of wildfires along the Northern Costa Blanca that forced the evacuation of 1,400 people. Hundreds of fire fighters backed by water-dropping air-
craft battling the largest of several fires which began on Sunday near Javea. Another blaze then kicked in on Tuesday morning near the mountain town of Bolulla, about 40 kilometres west of Javea, after most of the
country faced an “extreme risk” of wildfires since Sunday due to a heatwave. “Arsonists are responsible,” said Jose Maria Angel Batalla, from the Valencian regional emergency service, referring to the fire near
Javea. “Gasoline cans have been found and there were “three or four” outbreaks of fire on Sunday just a few hours before the sun set, giving fire fighters little time to act before visibility dropped”, he added. The Guardia Civil are said to be looking for two cars that fled the area. The main blaze roared through scrubland along the coastline near residential areas around Javea, sending thick plumes of grey smoke into the air. It has burnt more than 800 hectares of land, according to the Valencian government, and has charred several buildings in the area which is popular with British holidaymakers, as well as expats living there all year round. A wall of flames could be seen moving towards a row of white-washed villas in images broadcast on Spanish television.
MASS LANDING U
p to 100 illegal immigrants from Algeria landed in four small boats at Tabarca island on Monday afternoon, with 13 of them claiming to be minors, which means that they cannot be repatriated. Some of the people are said to have come from as far away as Syria before making their dangerous crossing over the Meditterannean waters to
Spain. All of the immigrants were taken by the Guardia Civil to Alicante City where they treated by the Red Cross with the National Police processing who can and cannot stay in the country. The alarm was raised on Tabarca at around two-thirty when the immigrants were spotted walking around the island with the two local police officers
based there calling in the
Guardia at Santa Pola.
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