The Junta elevates the Infoca Plan to operational situation 1 due to the fire in Igualeja, which keeps the municipality confined and has forced the evacuation of two sales points, a petrol station, and a house with three people.
The forest fire declared in Igualeja remains out of control and has forced the Junta de Andalucía to elevate the emergency phase to operational situation 1 of the Infoca Plan in the province of Málaga, according to Diario Sur. This measure implies that the extinguishing efforts are no longer the exclusive responsibility of the forest device and will be coordinated with other emergency services due to the risk of flames reaching people or property outside the forest.
The fire broke out at 22:19 on Saturday near the Mirador de Igualeja. The night was particularly complicated due to the wind, which necessitated a progressive reinforcement of the operational response. The municipality remains confined as a precaution: residents must stay indoors, with doors and windows closed to prevent smoke from entering, and avoid any travel that is not essential.
The decision to activate operational situation 1 was adopted and communicated by the first vice president and minister of the Presidency, Health and Emergencies of the Junta, Antonio Sanz. The phase change means that the management of the emergency is handed over to a unified command that coordinates all involved services.
During the early hours, a house where three people were located was evacuated as a precaution. Two sales points and a petrol station in the area were also evacuated. Regarding the roads, the MA-7304 remains closed between kilometre points 0 and 7, in Parauta, and the Coto road, which connects the MA-7300 with the A-397, is also impassable.
The preliminary analysis by the Fire Analysis Technical Unit (UTAF) recorded sustained winds of between 30 and 35 kilometres per hour, with gusts of 50 to 60 kilometres per hour. This weather kept both Igualeja and nearby municipalities on alert during the night for possible changes in the direction of the flames.
The deployment this Sunday includes 170 forest firefighters, twelve operations technicians, two extinguishing technicians, the director of the Provincial Operational Centre, a Meteorology and Forest Fire Team, and two Environmental agents. On the ground, six fire trucks, a Mobile Unit for Meteorology and Communications, a technical office module, a Medical Unit for Forest Fires, a Command Team for Forest Fires, and a Systems Unit in Emergencies are working.
The aerial operation consists of 22 aircraft: two light helicopters, seven semi-heavy ones, three heavy ones, and one command aircraft; two ground cargo planes and one coordination plane; as well as four light amphibious planes and two heavy ones.
Emergency services insist that no one should approach the fire area and that roads must remain clear to facilitate the movement of vehicles and extinguishing equipment. Residents of Igualeja are asked to remain attentive to the authorities' instructions while confinement is in place.
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