Man dies in attempt to fight Galicia forest fire
Man dies in attempt to fight Galicia forest fire
8 August 2006
published by www.eitb24.com
Spain — It is the third forest fire victim since Thursday in Galicia, with almost 5,000 hectares of grass and woodlands lost. Two women were killed on Friday when their car failed to outrun a forest fire in Cerdedo.
A 74-year-old man died fighting a forest fire that has burned thousands of acres in northwestern Spain, regional authorities said on Monday.
The man, identified as Manuel Aprada Fontella, was found on Sunday night among the scrubland near the town of Campo Lameiro.
He had joined other neighbors as a volunteer firefighter and apparently died engulfed in the spreading flames, said Alfredo Suarez Canal, regional minister of environment in Galicia.
The head of Galicia’s regional government, Emilio Perez, has called arsonists taking advantage of scorching summer temperatures that have dried out woodland “fire terrorists”.
It is the third forest fire victim since Thursday in Galicia, with almost 5,000 hectares of grass and woodlands lost, authorities said. Two women were killed on Friday when their car failed to outrun a forest fire in Cerdedo.
About 91 wildfires were reported in the region of Galicia this weekend, and 49 were still out of control on Monday, especially in the provinces of Pontevedra and A Coruna.
Regional authorities in Galicia asked the Spanish army to help evacuate people in danger from the fires, which have struck as Galicia is full of tourists enjoying what is usually some of Spain’s greenest scenery.
Other fires were reported in the region Catalonia in the northeast. The Environment Ministry has been trying to reduce the number of forest fires that affect Spain each year
