From this Wednesday until next Tuesday, Catalonia will face the most severe week of fire danger in the last 18 years, according to the Catalan government's Fire Prevention Service. The reason is the arrival of a heat wave from the south, bringing a mass of Saharan air across the Mediterranean, which will affect all countries from Portugal to Italy and could bring conditions similar to those which brought terrible fires to Greece and Turkey.
Civil Protection calls for "extreme caution and avoidance of any activity of risk " - and warns that the risk of forest fires is "extreme." Below is the risk map shared by Catalonia's Rural Agents for today, Tuesday:
Forest fire risk map for August 10th, 2021. Rural Agents. White = not forested. From cream to deep red = increasing level of fire risk.
INFOCAT pre-alert activated
In this scenario, Civil Protection announced on Monday that it was activating the pre-alert of the INFOCAT forest fire plan. The forecasts for very high temperatures, very low humidity and the existing drought mean that the risk is especially accentuated in the western and central parts of Catalonia as well as the central part of the pre-litoral mountains from the Maresme to Tarragona, with the danger extending right to the shores of the Mediterranean in those areas.
To prepare for this possibility, the Catalan government recommends avoiding all entry to forests unless it is strictly necessary, and minimizing activity in the mountains. At the same time, farmers have been asked to plow perimetral strips around their cereal fields, with the aim of removing plant matter from the surface and creating fire breaks.
The interior ministry will hold a press conference on Wednesday to report in detail on the evolving situation and it is not ruled out that steps will be taken such as the closure of accesses to Natural Parks or a ban on business and industrial activities in forest areas.
In a video posted on Twitter, the Catalan minister for climate action, food and rural agenda, Teresa Jordà, warned that "this is no exaggeration". "It has happened in Greece and in Italy, now the heatwave is arriving in our home, Catalonia." She put out an "alarm call", in addition to "appealing to people's responsibility" in the face of weather conditions that, she explains, are expected to top 40 degrees C, and with very low humidity.
Jordà maintained that "if there is a wildfire, we can put it out and deal with it, but if there are many, it will be very difficult to put them out". The minister remarked that "it is only us who are the guarantors of our territory".
In addition to this advice, with the high temperatures, the Catalan government advises drinking plenty of water and keeping meals light, preventing children and the elderly from going out in the hottest hours of the day and staying in air-conditioned places, if possible.
Main image: A firefighter inspects an area affected by a fire in Martorell. Carlos Baglietto.