The wildfire in southern Catalonia is not yet fully under control. The total area affected is some 6,500 hectares (25 square miles), of which some 5,700 hectares have burnt. This Friday, the heat wave has reached its peak. With it, humidity has been dropping during the day, making the tasks of containing and extinguishing the flames more difficult.

Despite the optimism that reigned this morning at the command centre set up in Vinebre, the chief firefighter for Catalonia, David Borrell, called for collaboration from the public and maximum prudence. He says they would not have the resources to deal with a second fire of such scale. Indeed, during the day a number of smaller-scale fires have broken out around Catalonia, requiring units to be diverted, but these have all now been brought under control.

At daybreak, when the airborne units were able to take off again, it was confirmed that the strategy so far is working and that the flames have been contained. "The night has gone well", said the chief firefighter, but the heat predicted for today was what worried them most. "We're expecting temperature highs of up to 44ºC . That makes us worry that towards midday it could start up again,".

"The fire's perimeter hasn't grown during the night. The idea is to work so that doesn't happen during the day either, but that will be complicated, especially on the right-hand flank," continued Borrell.

No end today

Although it might be contained, Catalan interior minister Miquel Buch has said they don't expect to be able to stabilise or control the whole area today. Their work is not aided by it being the hottest day of the year so far.

For the moment, however, the main objective of containing the section of the right-hand side advancing northwards, and causing the most concern, has been achieved. As of this morning there were no active fronts left and they'd managed to increase the presence of ground units around the perimeter. Overnight, with a drop in the wind and lower temperatures, 400 firefighters were deployed around the area to attack the flames.

For the moment, five roads remain closed: the T-714 at Torre de l'Espanyol, the T-2237 between Vinebre and Palma d'Ebre, the T-703 at Palma d'Ebre, the C-233 between Bovera and Flix, and the C-12 between Maials and Flix.